3./S. 


t  flit  ®to%tW|  ^ 

llj  PRINCETON,  N.  J.  *g 


Presented    by  o>Y^  <3   CA\_a-VV-\0 


V. 


Division 


Section 


Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 

in  2011  with  funding  from 

Princeton  Theological  Seminary  Library 


http://www.archive.org/details/moderncallofmiOOdenn 


The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 


By 

Rev.  James  S.  Dennis,  D.D. 


The  Modern  Call  of  Missions.     Studies 

in  Some  of  the  Larger  Aspects  of  a  Great  Enter- 
prise.   8vo,  cloth,  net $  1.50. 

The    New    Horoscope    of   Missions. 

l2mo,  cloth,  net $  1.00. 

"JA  broad  general  view  of  the  present  aspects  of  the 
missionary  situation.  A  valuable  addition  to  the 
growing  literature  of  missions." — Examiner. 

Foreign  Missions   After  a   Century. 

8vo,  cloth $  1.50. 

"  A  broad,  philosophical  and  systematic  view  of 
the  missionary  work  in  its  relation  to  the  living 
Church." — The  Independent. 

Christian  Missions  and  Social  Prog- 
ress. A  Sociological  Study  of  Foreign  Missions. 
Three  volumes,  with  over  200  full-page  illustrations. 
Each  volume  8vo,  cloth,  gilt  top. 

Vol.  I.  and  II.     Each $  2.50. 

Vol.  Ill net  $  2.50. 

Centennial  Survey  of  Foreign  Mis- 
sions. Supplement  to  "  Christian  Missions  and 
Social  Progress,"  being  a  conspectus  of  the  achieve- 
ments and  results  of  evangelical  missions  in  all 
lands  at  the  close  of  the  nineteenth  century.  Ob- 
long 4  to,  illustrated net  $  4.00. 


The  Modern  Call  of 
Missions 

Studies  in  Some  of  the  Larger 
Aspects  of  a  Great  Enterprise 


JAMES  S.  DENNIS,  D.  D. 


Wider  and  wider  yet 

The  gates  of  the  nations  swing ; 
Clearer  and  clearer  still 

The  wonderful  prophecies  ring  : 
Go  forth,  ye  hosts  of  the  living  God, 

And  conquer  the  earth  for  your  King ! 

— Harriet  McEwan  Kimball. 


New  York  Chicago  Toronto 

Fleming     H.     Revell     Company 


London 


AND 


Edinburgh 


Copyright,  19 13,  by 
FLEMING  H.  REVELL  COMPANY 


New  York:  158  Fifth  Avenue 
Chicago:  125  North  Wabash  Ave. 
Toronto:  25  Richmond  Street,  W. 
London :  2 1  Paternoster  Square 
Edinburgh:      100    Princes    Street 


TO  MY  SON 

ALFRED  L.  P.  DENNIS 

THIS  BOOK  IS  AFFECTIONATELY 
INSCRIBED 


Preface 

THIS  volume  is  made  up  of  a  number  of  articles 
contributed  to  the  press  during  past  years, 
especially  to  missionary  reviews  and  period- 
icals. In  preparing  them  for  collected  publication  they 
have  been  revised,  and  in  some  instances  almost  wholly 
rewritten,  bringing  them  up  to  date  in  the  information 
they  give  and  the  facts  they  record.  Thanks  are  due 
to  the  editors  of  various  periodicals  for  permission  to 
republish,  and  the  source  of  each  article  is  indicated. 
They  deal  largely  with  the  wider  aspects  of  the  mis- 
sionary enterprise  and  the  more  serious  tasks  which 
confront  it.  They  have  been  written  under  the  con- 
viction that  world-wide  missions  represent  in  their 
prospective  influence,  their  varied  activities,  and  full 
significance,  the  divine  ideal  of  Christian  service  for  all 
mankind,  and  that  in  their  ultimate  purpose  they  may 
be  said  to  stand  for  a  large  and  hopeful  movement 
toward  the  final  goal  of  human  progress. 

The  researches  of  the  author  have  led  him  to  believe 
that  there  is  much  of  interest  to  the  missionary  student 
of  the  higher  life  of  man,  and  also  of  apologetic  value 
to  Christianity,  to  be  found  hidden  away  in  the  records 
of  diplomacy,  colonization,  commerce,  and  racial  de- 
velopment in  civilization.  The  secret  incentives  and 
interlacing  influences  of  missionary  motives  and  activ- 
ities in  the  history  of  human  advancement  well  deserve 
a  thorough  study  and  exposition.     An  open  door  of 

7 


8  Preface 

historic  research  awaits  some  soholar,  loving  that 
kingdom  which  "  cometh  not  with  observation,"  who 
will  reverently  unfold  to  the  modern  Church  the  silent 
and  almost  undiscovered  workings  of  a  sovereign  pur- 
pose traceable  in  national  and  racial  progress,  and  in 
the  age-long  advance  of  mankind  toward  a  divinely 
christened  society. 

J.  S.  D. 
Montclair,  N.  J. 


Contents 

I.  Missions  and  Diplomacy        .        .        .11 

II.  The    Missionary   Factor  in   Colonial 

History 41 

III.  Missions  and  National  Evolution         .  75 

IV.  Commerce  and  Missions  ...  85 

V.  Missions  in  China  :  A  Defense  and  an 

Appreciation 119 

VI.  The  Lessons  of  Martyrdom  :   Its  Mes- 

sage to  the  Church  of  Our  Day        .     143 

VII.  The  Appeal  of  Missions  to  the  Modern 

Church 157 

VIII.  The  Laymen's  Movement  :  An  Interpre- 

tation          169 

IX.  Union  Movements  in  Mission  Fields  : 

A  Survey  of  Recent  Achievements  .     185 

X.  The  Hymnody  of  Modern  Missions        .     205 

XI.  Islam  and  Christian  Missions        .        .211 

XII.  The    American     Missionary     in     the 

Near  East 243 

XIII.  The  Strategic  Import  of  Missions  in 

the  Levant 263 

XIV.  Is  Islam  the  Gospel  for  the  Orient?  .     275 

XV.  The  Recent  Crisis  in  the  Syrian  Prot- 

estant College  at  Beirut  .        .285 

XVI.  A  Christmas  Gift  of  Prayer  for  Syria     297 

XVII.  "  His  Star  in  the  East  "...     305 

XVIII.  A  December  Voyage  of  Discovery        .     311 
Index 321 


Missions  and  Diplomacy :  The  Service  of  Mis- 
sionaries in  Facilitating  International  Ties 


Viewed  from  the  standpoint  of  history,  what  national  interest  is  there 
that  is  really  at  stake  to-day,  that  does  not  shrink  when  compared  with  the 
question  of  whether  China  is  to  cast  her  vast  weight  of  humanity  on  the 
side  of  a  soulless  secularism  or  of  Christian  faith,  whether  the  long  travail 
of  India  is  to  end  in  the  birth  of  a  religious  life  adequate  to  the  spiritual 
genius  of  her  peoples,  whether  the  backward  races  of  the  tropical  zone  are 
to  be  won  for  Christ  or  Islam  ?  What  does  it  matter  that  these  questions 
are  to-day  still  almost  outside  the  ken  of  modern  culture  ?  They  concern 
the  deepest  fortune  of  more  than  one-half  of  the  human  race.  Every  one 
who  knows  anything  of  the  great  movements  of  history  knows  that  one  of 
the  mightiest  of  its  forces  for  good  or  for  evil  is  religion.  It  is  surely 
plain,  moreover,  that  that  which  concerns  the  rise  or  fall  of  religion  in  one- 
half  of  the  human  race  must  profoundly  influence  both  the  temporal  and 
the  eternal  interests  of  the  other  half.  Such  matters  belong  not  to  politics 
but  to  history,  and  if  men  have  not  the  intelligence  or  the  soul  to  see  them, 
history  will  judge  them  as  to-day  it  judges  the  ancient  statesmen  and  his- 
torians who  looked  upon  early  Christianity  as  a  depraved  superstition,  and 
who  would  have  thought  the  man  mad  who  put  it  on  the  same  plane  of 
importance  as  the  forgotten  politics  of  the  Levant  of  their  day.  In  this 
matter  we  have  here  a  great  human  interest,  vaster  by  far  than  the  inter- 
ests dominating  the  diplomacy  of  Europe.  Is  it  right  that  it  should  be 
ignored,  or  that  it  should  have  a  secondary  place  in  men's  minds  ? 

Prof.  David  S.  Cairns,  D.  D. 


I 

MISSIONS  AND  DIPLOMACY  ■ 

The  Service  of  Missionaries  in  Facilitating  Inter- 
national Ties 

THE  Honourable  John  W.  Foster  in  his  interest- 
ing volume  on  "  American  Diplomacy  in  the 
Orient "  has  called  our  attention  to  the  note- 
worthy character  of  our  diplomatic  record  among  the 
great  nations  of  the  Far  East.  It  is  a  record  with 
which  Americans  have  good  reason  to  be  gratified,  and 
the  book  is  one  which  should  be  carefully  read  by  stu- 
dents of  politics  and  all  who  are  interested  in  the  new 
trans-Pacific  outlook,  the  sudden  dawning  of  which 
promises  a  long  and  strenuous  day.  The  book  shows 
that  we  have  had  a  record  of  vigorous  and  influential  dip- 
lomatic contact  with  Oriental  nations,  and  indicates  to 
the  thoughtful  reader  that  present  developments  are  the 
inevitable  sequence  of  our  past  history  and  our  extra- 
ordinary national  growth.  We  cannot  now  retire, 
even  if  we  were  so  inclined,  from  a  watchful  and  force- 
ful international  position  in  Eastern  affairs  called  for 
and  amply  justified  by  our  past  activities  and  our  pres- 
ent interests. 

There  is  an  important  aspect  of  this  subject  to  which 
Mr.  Foster  refers  when  the  occasion  calls  for  it,  and 

1  Missionary  Review  of  the  World,  Ootober,  1903,  under  the  title  of 
"  International  Service  of  Missions. " 

13 


14  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

always  with  cordial  and  sympathetic  appreciation.1 
Under  the  limitations  of  his  volume,  however,  he  could 
not  treat  it  with  that  accentuation  and  attention  to  de- 
tail which  it  might  properly  receive  in  a  special  article. 
We  refer  to  the  services  rendered  at  times  by  American 
missionaries  in  facilitating  the  diplomatic  negotiations 
and  cementing  the  international  friendship  of  the  United 
States  with  the  East.  In  an  article  specially  devoted 
to  this  subject  it  would  not  be  inappropriate  to  glance 
also  at  similar  services  of  missionaries  of  other  Chris- 
tian nations  in  deepening  the  international  rapproche- 
ment between  Christendom  and  the  distant  alien  races 
of  Africa  and  the  Orient. 

Have  missions  then  really  proved  a  factor  in  the 
development  of  international  ties  ?  Have  they  had  a 
part  to  play  in  the  drama  of  modern  history  in  its  in- 
terracial phases  ?  If  so,  they  are  proving  themselves 
to  be  among  those  evolutionary  forces  which  work  for 
the  growth  of  friendship,  commercial  contact,  industrial 
exchange,  diplomatic  intercourse,  and  the  kindly  rec- 
ognition of  mutual  obligations  among  the  nations  of 
mankind.  The  contact  of  Western  Christendom  with 
the  races  of  Asia,  Africa,  and  Oceania  has  become  a 
matter  of  unwonted  importance  during  recent  years. 
The  nations  of  the  Far  East  are  no  longer  obscure  and 
unknown  factors  in  the  arena  of  world  politics.  It  is 
clear,  therefore,  that  every  agency  which  aids  in  the 
establishment  of  mutual  confidence  and  good-will  is  of 
high  value. 

It  is  true  that  missions  were  not  established  to  pro- 
mote diplomatic  amenities,  or  to  aid  backward  nations 

1  Foster,  "American  Diplomacy  in  the  Orient,"  pp.  106-109,  115, 
220-223,  386,  387,  411-413. 


Missions  and  Diplomacy  15 

in  assuming  international  functions.  They  have,  never- 
theless, accomplished  much  incidentally  in  these  direc- 
tions by  forging  connecting  links  of  contact  and  inter- 
course, cultivating  good- will,  solving  difficulties,  giving 
friendly  advice,  facilitating  acquaintance  with  Western 
administrative  systems,  mediating  between  foreign 
diplomacy  and  native  misunderstandings,  encouraging 
that  status  of  mutual  confidence  which  promotes  peace- 
ful relationships,  and  often  ministering  as  the  almoners 
of  international  philanthropy  in  periods  of  calamity 
and  distress. 

Illustrations  of  this  may  be  discovered  not  only  in 
modern  times,  but  in  the  history  of  missions  during 
earlier  centuries.  It  is  the  missionary  quite  as  much  as 
the  political  or  commercial  motive  which  seems  to  as- 
sert itself  in  many  of  those  initial  ventures  which  have 
led  on  to  the  exploration  of  an  unknown  world,  and  the 
moulding  of  new  nations.  The  apostolic  age  of  the 
Church  was  international  in  the  expansiveness  of  its 
evangelistic  aims,  and  in  the  scope  of  its  missionary 
activities.  Subsequent  centuries  bear  witness  to  the 
outreaching  touch  of  Christianity,  bringing  nation  into 
contact  with  nation.  The  Nestorians  pushed  boldly 
into  China  as  early  as  the  seventh  century,  and  into 
India  probably  at  a  date  still  earlier,  following 
Pantsenus,  who  had  preceded  them  in  the  latter  part  of 
the  second  century.  Ulfilas  was  a  messenger  to  the 
Goths  in  the  fourth  century,  as  were  Cyril  and 
Methodius  to  the  Slavs  in  the  ninth.  In  Central  and 
Northern  Europe,  including  the  British  Isles,  we  can 
trace  the  entrance  of  Columba,  Augustine,  Columbanus, 
Gallus,  Eligius,  Boniface,  Willi brord,  Ansgar,  and  many 
others    equally   zealous,   though    less   conspicuous,   in 


16  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

the  annals  of  those  formative  centuries.  Hans  Egede 
linked  Denmark  with  Greenland  in  the  eighteenth  cen- 
tury. The  Moravian  missionaries  followed,  and  from 
that  time  Herrnhut  became  an  active  factor  in  the 
international  contact  of  the  world.  Labrador  was 
reached  by  Jens  Haven  in  1764: ;  Francis  Xavier 
linked  Portugal  with  India  in  the  sixteenth  century ; 
Heurnius  was  a  connecting  bond  between  Holland  and 
the  Dutch  East  Indies  in  the  seventeenth  century  ;  and 
in  the  eighteenth  century  Ziegenbalg,  Plutschau,  and 
Schwartz  brought  Denmark  into  spiritual  relations 
with  India.  These  were  all  international  messengers 
upon  an  errand  of  peace,  good-will,  and  friendship. 

The  maritime  discoveries  of  the  fifteenth  century 
were  undertaken,  among  other  motives,  with  a  definite 
and  pronounced  missionary  purpose.  That  ponderous 
work  entitled  "  The  Jesuit  Eelations  and  Allied  Docu- 
ments "  reveals  the  immense  and  prolonged  contribu- 
tion of  Roman  Catholic  missionaries  toward  the 
establishment  of  international  intercourse  between 
France  and  America  for  nearly  two  hundred  years. 
The  footsteps  of  those  indefatigable  missionary  pio- 
neers can  be  traced  during  the  seventeenth  and  eight- 
eenth centuries  along  the  St.  Lawrence,  and  on  both 
sides  of  the  Great  Lakes,  on  into  the  Far  West.  They 
deflected  southward  into  Maine,  into  Illinois,  and  even 
as  far  as  Louisiana,  and  penetrated  northward  toward 
the  inhospitable,  icy  wilderness  of  Hudson  Bay. 

The  British  colonial  establishments  in  North  America 
were,  moreover,  missionary  in  spirit  to  an  extent  which 
makes  them  almost  the  forerunners  of  the  foreign 
missionary  societies  of  a  later  age.  Their  charters 
usually  had  a  strong  missionary  clause,  and  their  no- 


Missions  and  Diplomacy  1 7 

blest  men  were  Christian  pioneers  as  well  as  statesmen. 
They  sought  not  only  religious  liberty  and  opportunity 
for  themselves,  but  they  were  in  many  conspicuous  in- 
stances intent  upon  the  dissemination  of  the  Gospel 
among  the  aborigines.  In  the  first  charter  of  Vir- 
ginia, given  by  James  I,  in  April,  1606,  it  was  stipu- 
lated that  "  the  Word  and  service  of  God  be  preached, 
planted,  and  used  as  well,  in  said  colonies,  as  also  as 
much  as  might  be  among  the  savages  bordering  among 
them."  In  a  letter  to  Sir  Walter  Kaleigh,  referring  to 
the  project  of  the  Virginia  Colony,  Hakluyt  writes  ex- 
pressing his  pleasure  in  Kaleigh's  plans,  because  "  you 
meane  to  sende  some  such  good  Churchman  thither  [to 
Virginia]  as  may  truly  say  with  the  Apostles  to  the 
Sauvages,  wee  seeke  not  yours  but  you."  Bradford  de- 
clared the  propagation  of  the  Gospel  of  the  kingdom 
of  Christ  as  one  of  the  great  hopes  of  his  pilgrimage. 
Winthrop  was  inspired  by  similar  impulses.  The  char- 
ter of  the  Massachusetts  Colony  emphasizes  the  mis- 
sionary motive  as  one  of  the  inspirations  which 
prompted  its  establishment.  Macdonald's  "  Select 
Charters  and  Other  Documents  Illustrative  of  American 
History,  1606-1775,"  pages  2,  3,  16,  25,  42,  126,  and 
184,  gives  the  text  of  some  of  these  chartered  assevera- 
tions of  missionary  aims  in  our  early  colonial  history. 

Those  mighty  ties  of  spiritual  interest  which  now 
link  India  with  all  Christendom  are  the  outcome  of 
missions.  In  their  own  sphere  of  moral  and  religious 
influence  missionaries  have  cooperated  with  English 
statesmen,  and  rendered  a  service  of  value  both  to 
Great  Britain  and  to  India.  The  strange  and  unwar- 
ranted attitude  of  the  old  East  India  Company  toward 
missionary  effort  has  long  ago  changed,  and  the  value  of 


18  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

missions  to  British  interests  in  India  is  now  freely  rec- 
ognized. Since  the  days  of  the  Mutiny  it  has  become 
more  and  more  apparent  that  a  native  Christian  com- 
munity is  a  valuable  ally  of  English  rule,  and,  so  far 
as  its  influence  goes,  a  moral  guarantee  of  fidelity  and 
good- will.  The  sailing  of  Captain  James  Wilson  and 
thirty-six  missionaries  in  the  Duff,  which  was  owned 
and  sent  out  by  the  London  Missionary  Society,  in 
1796,  opened  the  South  Pacific  to  those  largesses  of 
light  and  civilization  which  missionary  effort  has  sent 
there  during  the  past  century.  The  West  Coast  of 
Africa  first  felt  the  touch  of  Christian  sympathy  when 
English  and  Scotch  and  Moravian  missionaries  went 
there  late  in  the  eighteenth  century.  The  cooperation 
of  the  Church  Missionary  Society,  the  Wesleyan  Mis- 
sionary Society,  and  the  United  Presbyterian  Missions 
of  Scotland,  has  contributed  in  no  small  measure  to 
the  opening  up  of  the  vast  regions  of  the  Niger  Basin, 
and  has  been  a  factor  in  furthering  the  present  polit- 
ical supremacy  of  Great  Britain  throughout  Nigeria. 
German,  French,  American,  and  English  missions  have 
also  been  helpful  still  further  toward  the  South. 

The  marvellous  story  of  African  colonization  during 
the  nineteenth  century  is  indissolubly  linked  with  mis- 
sionary devotion  and  achievement.  Such  names  as 
Vanderkemp,  Philip,  Krapf,  Kebmann,  Moffat,  John 
Mackenzie,  Livingstone,  and  Bishop  Mackenzie  of  the 
Zambesi,  as  well  as  many  others  later  in  the  century, 
certify  to  the  truth  of  this  statement.  We  may  al- 
most reckon  the  Uganda  Protectorate  as  virtually  the 
outcome  of  missions,  with  that  colossal  achievement  of 
a  railway  from  Mombasa  to  the  Victoria  Nyanza  as  a 
necessary  result.     In  fact,  when  the  Imperial  British 


Missions  and  Diplomacy  19 

East  Africa  Company  proposed  to  retire  from  Uganda, 
in  1892,  it  was  largely  the  missionary  appeal  of  Bishop 
Tucker  and  the  officers  and  friends  of  the  Church  Mis- 
sionary Society  which  influenced  public  opinion  in 
Great  Britain,  and  secured  the  funds  required  to  main- 
tain the  company  in  its  place  for  another  year,  thereby 
bringing  about,  in  cooperation  with  an  irresistible  pub- 
lic sentiment,  the  sending  of  a  special  commission 
under  Sir  Gerald  Portal,  which  resulted  eventually  in 
the  establishment  of  the  British  Protectorate. 

A  Cape  to  Cairo  Railway  has  furthermore  cap- 
tured the  British  imagination,  and  is  now  an  evident 
probability.  In  the  light  of  this  fact  it  is  curious  to 
note  that  as  far  back  as  1860,  at  the  consecration  of 
Bishop  Mackenzie  as  a  missionary  to  what  is  now  the 
British  Central  Africa  Protectorate,  Bishop  Gray  desig- 
nated the  work  entrusted  to  the  new  bishop  as  "  the 
first  link  in  a  chain  of  missions  which  should  stretch 
one  day  from  Cape  Town  to  Cairo."  Livingstone  was 
a  pioneer  figure  in  this  section  of  Africa  at  even  an 
earlier  date,  and  since  then  English,  Scotch,  and  Conti- 
nental missions  all  along  that  proposed  route  have  been 
making  the  moral  surveys,  and  laying  the  road-bed  of 
civilization,  for  the  Cape  to  Cairo  Express.  Another 
singular  instance  of  missionary  foresight  is  the  prophetic 
vision  of  Krapf,  in  the  earlier  half  of  the  last  century, 
of  a  chain  of  mission  stations  across  Africa.  His  dream 
is  now  almost  realized,  since  only  a  few  days'  journey 
lies  between  the  eastern  outposts  of  the  Congo  missions 
and  the  western  extension  of  the  Church  Missionary 
operations  in  Uganda.  Further  illustrations  might  be 
drawn  from  the  history  of  Cape  Colony  and  Bechuana- 
land,  where  Moffat  and  John  Mackenzie  have  left  their 


20  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

record.  Khama's  Country  and  the  whole  of  British  Cen- 
tral Africa,  including  the  upper  waters  of  the  Zambesi, 
where  the  French  Mission  labours  among  the  Barotsi, 
serve  the  same  purpose  of  illustrating  an  international 
value  to  missionary  enterprise.  Again,  at  Zanzibar 
and  in  British  East  Africa  the  Universities'  Mission  has 
been  the  forerunner  of  interracial  bonds.  It  should  be 
noted  carefully  that  the  political  motive  has  not  insti- 
gated or  governed  the  missionary  propaganda,  yet  in- 
ternational movements  have  no  doubt  been  quickened 
and  facilitated  by  the  fact  that  a  work  of  Christianiza- 
tion  has  either  preceded  or  accompanied  the  building 
of  empire. 

Turning  to  China,  we  find  Morrison  and  Gutzlaff,  the 
former  in  the  double  capacity  of  missionary  and  inter- 
preter for  the  East  India  Company,  serving  in  interna- 
tional affairs  before  its  formal  opening  to  the  foreigner. 
The  Rev.  E.  C.  Bridgman  and  Dr.  Peter  Parker  were 
associated  with  the  Honourable  Caleb  Cushing  in  ne- 
gotiating the  first  treaty  which  the  United  States  made 
with  China,  in  1844.  Both  these  men  were  masters  of 
the  Chinese  language,  familiar  with  the  customs  of  the 
country,  and  acceptable  media  of  communication.  The 
aid  which  they  rendered  was  extremely  useful.  Mr. 
Cushing  declared  that  "  they  were  invaluable  as  ad- 
visers." It  was  in  the  early  British  negotiations  that 
Morrison  and  Gutzlaff  rendered  a  similar  service.  The 
former  was  associated  with  Lord  Amherst  in  1816,  and 
was  for  some  years  interpreter  and  secretary  to  the 
British  Ambassador,  and  Gutzlaff  was  his  successor  in 
the  same  position.  "When  the  Treaty  of  Nanking  was 
made,  the  latter  participated  in  the  negotiations,  and 
rendered  important  aid.     It  would  thus  appear  that 


Missions  and  Diplomacy  2 1 

the  initial  word  of  friendly  diplomatic  intercourse  be- 
tween China  and  two  great  governments  of  the  West 
was  spoken  through  the  medium  of  missionary  secre- 
taries and  interpreters. 

A  few  years  later,  in  1858,  when  the  notable  trea- 
ties of  Tientsin  with  the  four  governments  of  the 
United  States,  Great  Britain,  France,  and  Russia,  were 
drawn  up  with  China,  in  the  case  of  the  United  States 
treaty  two  American  missionaries  whose  services  in  the 
negotiations  were  of  historic  importance  and  value 
were  associated  with  the  Honourable  W.  B.  Reed,  the 
minister  who  represented  the  United  States  on  that  oc- 
casion. Dr.  S.  Wells  Williams  and  Dr.  W.  A.  P.  Mar- 
tin, both  missionary  scholars  and  statesmen,  took  an 
active  part  in  the  preliminary  conferences,  and  in  fix- 
ing the  provisions  of  the  document,  as  well  as  securing 
its  acceptance.  It  was  due  to  Dr.  Williams  that  the 
memorable  Toleration  Clause,  afterward  included  sub- 
stantially in  the  British  treaty,  was  inserted.  Mr.  Reed 
was  apparently  not  awake  to  its  importance,  nor  was 
he  inclined  to  press  it.  He  remarked  to  the  mission- 
aries concerning  it :  "  Now,  gentlemen,  if  you  can  get 
your  article  in,  all  right,  but  with  or  without  it,  I  intend 
to  sign  on  the  18th  of  June." 

The  missionaries  realized  its  import  and  desirability, 
and  obtained  permission  from  Mr.  Reed  to  propose  it 
to  the  Chinese  officials.  In  this  purpose  the  Russian 
Minister  was  also  in  hearty  sympathy,  and,  in  fact,  had 
himself  drawn  up  a  Toleration  Clause,  which  was,  how- 
ever, objected  to  by  the  Chinese  officials.  The  clause 
subsequently  drawn  up  by  Dr.  Williams  was  cavilled  at, 
and  rejected  in  its  first  form,  but  it  was  rewritten  by 
him,  and  its  final  draft  was  accepted  by  the  Chinese 


22  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

commissioners.  The  preliminary  draft  of  the  clause 
had  been  returned  by  the  Chinese  commissioners  so 
altered  and  restricted  that  it  was  unacceptable  to  Mr. 
Reed,  who  was  inclined  to  have  it  omitted  altogether 
rather  than  delay  longer  the  signing  of  the  treaty. 
Dr.  Williams  passed  a  restless  night  of  disappointment 
and  anxiety,  but  arose  in  the  morning  with  a  new  draft 
in  mind,  which  he  thought  would  serve  the  purpose 
and  be  acceptable.  He  reduced  it  at  once  to  writing, 
and  with  Dr.  Martin  went  in  haste  to  the  Chinese  com- 
missioners on  the  morning  of  the  very  day  fixed  for 
the  signing  of  the  treaties.  The  article  was  accepted, 
and  reads  as  follows  : 

"  The  principles  of  the  Christian  religion,  as  professed 
by  the  Protestant  and  Roman  Catholic  churches,  are 
recognized  as  teaching  men  to  do  good,  and  to  do  to 
others  as  they  would  have  others  do  to  them.  Here- 
after those  who  quietly  profess  and  teach  these  doc- 
trines shall  not  be  harassed  or  persecuted  on  account  of 
their  faith.  Any  person,  whether  citizen  of  the  United 
States  or  Chinese  convert,  who,  according  to  these 
tenets,  shall  peaceably  teach  and  practise  the  principles 
of  Christianity  shall  in  no  case  be  interfered  with  or 
molested." 

Thus,  to  American  missionaries,  especially  Dr.  Will- 
iams, is  due  the  credit  of  securing  a  treaty  incorporat- 
ing the  policy  of  a  tolerant  recognition  of  Christianity 
on  the  part  of  the  Chinese  Government.  In  the  case 
of  the  United  States  treaty  the  wording,  "  Any  person, 
whether  citizen  of  the  United  States  or  Chinese  convert  " 
was  substituted  by  Mr.  Reed  in  place  of  the  original 
word  "  whoever,"  Mr.  Reed  desiring  that  the  treaty 
should  apply  explicitly  to  citizens  of  the  United  States. 


Missions  and  Diplomacy  23 

This  change  distinguishes  the  United  States  treaty  from 
all  others,  in  that  Chinese  converts  are  definitely  speci- 
fied, and  placed  on  a  basis  of  toleration,  although  this 
is  also  plainly  implied  in  another  form  of  words  in  the 
Russian  and  French  clauses,  and  the  English  clause  is 
capable  of  such  an  interpretation.  Dr.  "Williams  was 
given  to  understand  at  the  time  that  no  Toleration 
Clause  would  have  been  inserted  in  the  British  treaty 
had  it  been  left  out  in  the  American.  This  concession 
had  not  been  included  in  formal  treaties,  although  the 
French  Minister,  M.  de  Lagrene,  in  1844,  had  secured 
from  the  Emperor  Tau  Kwang  an  imperial  rescript  re- 
voking the  persecuting  orders,  and  proclaiming  an 
edict  of  toleration.  This,  however,  was  practically  a 
dead  letter,  and  would  have  been  of  little  value  so  far 
as  any  permanent  international  policy  was  concerned. 
It  should  be  remarked,  also,  that  the  British  missionaries 
at  Ningpo  and  Shanghai  had  addressed  Lord  Elgin  on 
the  subject  of  toleration  before  the  British  treaty  was 
drawn  up,  but,  judging  from  his  reply,  the  appeal  was 
of  little  avail. 

The  treaty  concession  of  Tientsin  may,  therefore,  be 
called  the  Magna  Charta  of  religious  freedom  in  China. 
Dr.  Williams,  and  we  may  add  Dr.  Martin  also,  were 
its  sponsors,  and  to  these  distinguished  missionaries 
belongs  the  high  honour  of  establishing  the  principle  of 
religious  freedom  in  a  permanent  historical  setting 
before  the  view  of  "  almost  the  two  halves  of  the  human 
race."  Dr.  "Williams  was  subsequently  appointed  to 
the  office  of  Secretary  and  Interpreter  of  the  United 
States  Legation  in  China,  and  served  in  that  capacity — 
chiefly  at  Peking — until  his  resignation,  in  1876.  It 
was  he  who  secured  official  quarters  for  the  United 


24  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

States  ambassadors  in  Peking,  and  his  efficient  executive 
discharge  of  his  duties  was  an  important  service  during 
those  early  years  of  ministerial  residence  at  the  Chinese 
capital.  Mr.  Reed  cordially  acknowledges  the  services 
of  his  missionary  assistants  in  the  following  words  : 
"  Without  them  as  interpreters  the  public  business  could 
not  be  transacted.  I  could  not  but  for  their  aid  have 
advanced  one  step  in  the  discharge  of  my  duties  here, 
or  read,  or  written,  or  understood  one  word  of  cor- 
respondence or  treaty  stipulations.  With  them  there 
has  been  no  difficulty  or  embarrassment."  The  impor- 
tance of  these  treaties,  securing  as  they  did  the  right  of 
diplomatic  residence  at  Peking,  freedom  to  travel  in 
China,  trade  facilities,  and  toleration  of  Christianity, 
has  been  recognized  by  friends  and  students  of  the 
East. 

Dr.  Williams's  subsequent  relations  with  Mr.  Burlin- 
game  were  very  happy  and  congenial,  as  he  fully 
sympathized  and  cooperated  with  that  distinguished 
ambassador  in  establishing  the  policy  of  friendship 
and  consideration  which  has  ever  since  characterized 
American  diplomatic  relations  with  China.1  He  was 
on  many  occasions  left  in  charge  of  the  legation  as 
Acting  Ambassador.  The  official  recognition  of  his 
services  by  the  Department  of  State  at  Washington 
was  cordial  and  appreciative,  as  appears  from  the  follow- 
ing extract : 

"  Your  knowledge  of  the  character  and  habits  of  the 
Chinese,  and  of  the  wants  and  necessities  of  the  people 
and  the  government,  and  your  familiarity  with  their 
language,  added  to  your  devotion  to  the  cause  of  Chris- 

1  "  Anson  Bnrlingame  and  the  First  Chinese  Mission  to  Foreign 
Powers,  "^Frederick  Wells  Williams,  1912.     Passiin. 


. 


Missions  and  Diplomacy  25 

tianity  and  the  advancement  of  civilization,  have  made 
for  you  a  record  of  which  you  have  every  reason  to  be 
proud.  Your  unrivalled  '  Dictionary  of  the  Chinese 
Language '  and  various  works  on  China  have  gained  for 
you  a  deservedly  high  position  in  scientific  and  literary 
circles.  Above  all,  the  Christian  world  will  not  forget 
that  to  you  more  than  to  any  other  man  is  due  the  inser- 
tion in  our  treaty  with  China  of  the  liberal  provision  for 
the  toleration  of  the  Christian  religion." 

It  is  worthy  of  note  that  his  services  in  securing  the  pro- 
vision of  toleration  were  regarded  as  calling  for  special 
commendation  by  our  government.  A  private  letter 
from  Secretary  of  State  Hamilton  Fish  expresses  the 
same  high  appreciation  of  his  official  career.  There  is 
little  reason  to  fear  that  the  principle  of  toleration 
introduced  over  half  a  century  ago  will  ever  be  re- 
versed. 

Another  Presbyterian  missionary,  the  Rev.  D.  B. 
McCartee,  M.  D.,  had  a  long  and  useful  career  in 
diplomatic  positions  both  in  China  and  Japan.  He 
accompanied  Flag-Officer  Stribling  of  the  American 
Navy  on  an  expedition  to  treat  with  the  rebels  at 
Nanking  at  the  time  of  the  Taiping  troubles,  and 
through  his  personal  influence  with  the  Chinese  leaders 
he  was  largely  instrumental  in  securing  a  "sealed 
guarantee  of  protection  for  all  Americans  against 
violence  from  the  rebels,  and  for  all  natives  in  the 
employ  or  care  of  American  citizens."  In  connection 
with  his  services  in  the  mixed  court  in  Shanghai,  in 
1872,  he  was  appointed  on  a  special  mission  to  Japan 
to  treat  for  the  return  of  three  hundred  Chinese  coolies, 
who,  in  the  Peruvian  vessel  Maria  Zuz,  had  been 
driven  by  a  typhoon  into  the  harbour  of  Yokohama. 


26  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

The  Chinese  authorities  presented  him  with  a  gold 
medal  and  a  complimentary  letter,  in  recognition  of  the 
successful  issue  of  the  mission.  He  subsequently  be- 
came Professor  of  Law  and  of  Natural  Science  at  the 
University  of  Tokyo,  and  from  that  time  his  services, 
for  a  period  of  some  twenty -eight  years,  were  given  to 
Japan.  He  was  instrumental  in  establishing  a  Chinese 
embassy  in  Japan,  and  became  himself  its  foreign  secre- 
tary and  adviser.  At  the  time  of  General  Grant's  visit 
to  Japan,  when  the  General  was  asked  to  arbitrate  the 
respective  claims  of  China  and  Japan  to  the  possession 
of  the  Liu  Chiu  Islands,  Dr.  McCartee,  who  was 
thoroughly  acquainted  with  the  historical  facts  and 
their  diplomatic  bearing,  placed  such  information  be- 
fore General  Grant  that  he  was  able  to  give  the  matter 
his  attention.  The  Chinese  Government  acknowledged 
his  services  in  the  Japanese  Legation  by  appointing  him 
to  the  permanent  rank  of  Honourary  Consul-General. 

In  those  memorable  negotiations  which  signalize  the 
entrance  of  modern  Japan  into  the  comity  of  nations, 
at  the  time  of  Commodore  Perry's  expedition,  we  find 
Dr.  S.  Wells  Williams  accompanying,  at  the  special 
request  of  the  Commodore,  both  the  first  and  second 
expeditions,  in  1853  and  1854.  He  took  an  active  and 
influential  part  in  the  negotiations,  and  it  was  at  his 
suggestion  that  the  Most  Favoured  Nation  Clause  was 
introduced  into  the  Japanese  treaty — the  first  compact 
of  Japan  with  Western  nations.  His  serious  and  vivid 
appreciation  of  the  historic  significance  of  his  diplomatic 
services  appears  in  private  letters  and  extracts  from  his 
journal.  He  writes  of  the  scene  in  the  Bay  of  Yeddo  : 
"  It  was  the  meeting  of  the  East  and  West,  the  circling 
of  the  world's  intercourse,  the  beginning  of  American 


Missions  and  Diplomacy  27 

interference  in  Asia,  the  putting  the  key  in  the  door  of 
Japanese  seclusion."  Speaking  of  the  presence  of  the 
American  ships,  he  writes :  "  Behind  them  and  through 
them  lie  God's  purposes  of  making  known  the  Gospel 
to  all  nations,  and  bringing  its  messages  and  responsi- 
bilities to  this  people,  which  has  had  only  a  sad  travesty 
of  the  truth  as  it  is  in  Christ  Jesus.  I  have  a  full  con- 
viction that  the  seclusion  policy  of  the  nations  of 
Eastern  Asia  is  not  according  to  God's  plan  of  mercy 
to  these  peoples."  Surely  this  missionary  diplomatist, 
with  his  faith  and  foresight,  was  an  instrument  chosen 
of  God  to  participate  in  those  momentous  events  which 
inaugurated  the  opening  of  both  China  and  Japan  to 
an  era  of  modern  progress  destined  to  be  the  most 
wonderful  in  their  history,  and  now  recognized  as  having 
also  a  mighty  international  significance.  The  memorial 
monument  to  Commodore  Perry,  erected  in  1901,  on 
the  shores  of  Japan,  was  an  appropriate  and  graceful 
tribute,  but  the  services  of  Dr.  Williams  most  assuredly 
deserve  also  a  grateful  commemoration  on  the  part  of 
Christendom. 

Several  distinguished  missionaries  in  Japan  have 
rendered  services  of  international  import.  Dr.  Guido 
F.  Verbeck  and  Dr.  Samuel  Rollins  Brown  were 
especially  useful  and  helpful  to  the  Japanese  during 
the  critical  period  of  the  reorganization  of  their  national 
life,  since  the  introduction  of  those  monumental  changes 
which  have  characterized  the  Meiji  era  of  Mutsuhito, 
the  late  Emperor.  Dr.  Verbeck  suggested  the  plan  of 
the  now  historic  embassy  sent  by  the  Japanese  Govern- 
ment to  America  and  Europe,  in  1871,  and  the  project 
was  finally  executed,  in  large  part  under  his  advice  and 
cooperation.     Its  results  proved  to  be  of  decisive  in- 


28  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

fluence  in  permanently  establishing  the  friendly  rela- 
tions of  Japan  with  the  nations  of  Christendom,  and 
was  a  factor  of  practical  moment  in  securing  that  re- 
ligious toleration  which  has  distinguished  the  Empire 
of  Japan  in  the  modern  history  of  the  East.  It  is  a 
matter  of  further  interest  that  the  recent  revision  of 
Japanese  treaties,  which  has  established  a  basis  of 
equality  with  Western  nations  since  July,  1899,  has 
been  both  favoured  and  facilitated  by  resident  mission- 
aries, out  of  a  sense  of  justice  and  fairness  to  Japan. 
By  manifestoes,  resolutions,  and  public  meetings,  as 
well  as  by  private  influence,  they  have  made  it  known 
that  they  regarded  the  aspirations  of  Japan  in  this  mat- 
ter with  sympathy  and  favour. 

The  diplomatic  relations  of  the  United  States  with 
Korea  have  been  also  facilitated  by  the  services  of  Dr. 
Horace  N".  Allen,  who  was  the  first  American  mission- 
ary to  arrive  in  Korea.  He  went  there  in  1884,  and 
was  soon  appointed  physician  to  the  court.  He  subse- 
quently, in  1887,  accompanied  the  first  Korean  Embassy 
to  "Washington  as  its  secretary,  returning  to  Seoul,  in 
1890,  as  Secretary  of  the  United  States  Legation.  In 
1897  he  was  appointed  United  States  Minister  to  Korea. 

While  speaking  of  embassies,  it  would  be  in  place  to 
notice  here  a  correlative  custom,  prompted  by  the  mis- 
sionary motive  and  facilitated  by  missionaries,  which 
seems  to  be  now  fairly  inaugurated.  We  refer  to  the 
representative  visits  to  mission  lands  of  men  of  intel- 
lectual and  spiritual  gifts,  as  ambassadors  of  the  Chris- 
tian faith  and  the  higher  life  of  Christendom,  and 
advocates  of  the  ideals  of  Western  progress.  These 
personal,  yet  in  a  sense  public,  tours  have  come  to  be 
of  importance  as  a  factor  in  the  cultivation  of  non- 


Missions  and  Diplomacy  29 

official  relations  of  friendship  and  mutual  understand- 
ing and  good-will.  The  Barrows  Lecturer,  represented 
by  such  men  as  Dr.  Barrows,  Dr.  Fairbairn,  Dr. 
Charles  Cuthbert  Hall,  and  Dr.  Charles  K.  Henderson, 
has  become  an  international  envoy,  with  a  beneficent 
message  of  wisdom  and  brotherhood.  Union  Theo- 
logical Seminary  sent  the  late  lamented  Dr.  George 
William  Knox  on  a  similar  errand.  The  Student 
Volunteer  leaders,  among  whom  Dr.  John  R.  Mott  is 
facile  princess,  the  Y.  M.  C.  A.  secretaries,  and  the 
professional  specialists  from  our  universities,  each  with 
a  brief  for  some  phase  of  ethical,  philosophical,  or 
scientific  thought,  are  all  representatives  of  the  higher 
and  nobler  phases  of  Western  learning,  and  their  serv- 
ices have  a  distinct  value  of  interracial  import. 

Not  only  have  the  treaty  relations  of  Christian 
nations  with  the  great  Asiatic  governments  of  China 
and  Japan  been  facilitated  by  missionary  cooperation, 
but  diplomatic  negotiations  with  smaller  tribes  and 
kingdoms — especially  in  Oceania — have  received  aid 
from  the  same  source.  Missionaries  have  often  pre- 
pared the  way  for  the  establishment  of  such  interna- 
tional ties  by  initial  intercourse  and  friendly  residence, 
thus  becoming  pioneer  media  of  information  and  contact. 
A  capital  illustration  of  this  is  New  Guinea,  where 
Chalmers  and  Lawes,  and  other  missionaries  of  the 
London  Society,  became  the  forerunners  of  the  present 
British  Protectorate.  The  services  they  rendered  in 
anticipation  of  the  British  occupation  of  Southern  New 
Guinea,  in  1884,  have  been  cordially  acknowledged  by 
Sir  James  E.  Erskine  and  Sir  Cyprian  Bridge,  both 
high  officers  in  the  British  Navy.1     In  the  same  way 

1  "Christian  Missions  and  Social  Progress,"  Vol.  Ill,  p.  279. 


30  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

missionary  labours  in  New  Zealand  brought  Maori 
hearts  into  touch  with  Christianity  and  civilization  to 
an  extent  which  no  doubt  greatly  facilitated  its  peace- 
ful political  attachment  to  the  British  Empire.  The 
earliest  mission  was  especially  successful  among  the 
Ngapuhi  tribe  ;  and  it  was  the  chiefs  of  this  important 
and  powerful  clan  who,  in  February,  1840,  at  "Waitangi 
Falls,  were  the  first  signers  of  the  treaty  accepting 
British  supremacy.  Nearly  two  thirds  of  the  entire 
Maori  population  had  professed  Christianity  in  1859. 
Marsden,  as  early  as  1814,  and  Selwyn  later,  were  ail- 
unconsciously  pioneer  empire-builders  in  New  Zealand. 
The  peaceable,  and  even  cordial,  ceding  of  Fiji  to 
Great  Britain  by  its  chiefs  and  people,  in  1874,  followed 
long  years  of  successful  missionary  toil  by  the  English 
Wesleyans,  resulting  in  a  marvellous  preoccupation  of 
native  hearts  throughout  the  islands  by  the  Gospel 
which  the  Wesleyans  brought.  A  British  protectorate 
was  established  over  the  Tonga  group  by  peaceful 
negotiations  in  1900,  but  years  before  that  English  mis- 
sionaries had  laboured  there  in  friendly  contact  with 
that  proud  and  vigorous  race.  The  Samoan  Islands, 
now  portioned  out  between  Germany  and  the  United 
States,  were  annexed  to  Christianity  half  a  century  or 
more  before  their  political  destiny  was  determined. 
The  Cook,  or  Hervey,  Islands  were  Christianized  and 
civilized  by  the  London  Society  missionaries  over  a 
generation  before  the  British  Protectorate  was  estab- 
lished, in  1888.  As  early  as  1864,  the  natives  peti- 
tioned Great  Britain  for  annexation,  but  a  protectorate 
only  was  instituted,  in  1888,  which,  at  the  request  again 
repeated  of  the  native  chiefs,  was  changed  to  annexa- 
tion to  New  Zealand,  in  1900.     Thus  a  reclaimed  race 


Missions  and  Diplomacy  31 

was  made  ready  by  missions  for  relations  of  friendly 
diplomacy  with  a  great  nation  of  Christendom.  The 
Santa  Cruz  group,  now  a  part  of  the  British  Empire, 
was  the  scene  of  the  martyrdom  of  Young  and  Nobbs, 
in  1864,  and  of  John  Coleridge  Patteson,  in  1871. 
Thousands  of  hearts  throughout  Christendom  have 
read  the  story  with  tender  interest,  and  some  day  no 
doubt  a  fitting  memorial  of  Patteson  will  commemorate 
under  the  British  flag  that  pathetic  incident.  Gladstone 
once  said  of  Patteson  himself  that  he  was  a  "  pledge 
of  noble  destinies." 

The  virtual  preemption  of  the  New  Hebrides,  destined 
possibly  to  have  their  political  future  linked  with  the 
British  Empire,  may  be  regarded  as  the  outcome  of  a 
missionary  occupation  which  has  been  sealed  by  martyr- 
dom, and  crowned  by  the  uplifting  transformation  of 
savage  tribes  into  aspirants  for  political  order  and 
moral  civilization.  In  1820,  two  English  missionaries 
— Ward  and  Burton — endeavoured  to  secure  a  foothold 
in  Sumatra  among  the  fierce  Battaks,  but  were  unable 
to  do  so.  In  1832,  two  American  missionaries — Munson 
and  Lyman — made  another  attempt,  but  were  martyred 
by  cannibals.  Thirty  years  later  a  third  endeavour,  on 
the  part  of  the  Rhenish  Society,  was  successful,  and  a 
region  in  North  Sumatra,  previously  wholly  inaccessible 
to  the  white  man,  was  opened  by  a  peaceful  occupation. 
From  that  martyrs'  seed  has  sprung  a  Christian  popula- 
tion of  some  fifty  thousand  native  Battaks,  now  living 
in  a  state  of  peace  and  good  order  which  promises  a 
developed  civilization.  The  Dutch  Government  in  the 
East  Indies  is  surely  a  debtor  for  this  missionary 
achievement. 

Hawaii,  now  United   States   territory,   was  largely 


32  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

moulded  and  fashioned  for  her  destiny  by  missionary 
pioneers  whose  labours  have  assumed  an  importance 
which  may  fairly  be  regarded  as  of  international  inter- 
est. During  the  whole  of  the  nineteenth  century, 
while  by  the  irresistible  growth  of  economic  and  po- 
litical ties,  and  the  manifest  trend  of  history,  it  belonged 
in  posse  to  the  United  States,  missionary  toil  was  fitting 
it  for  the  consummation  when  it  would  become  so  in 
esse.  Ex-Secretary  of  State,  the  Honourable  John  W. 
Foster,  in  his  admirable  volume  (p.  108)  already  men- 
tioned, places  a  high  estimate  upon  the  beneficial  effects, 
social  and  political,  of  American  missions  in  Hawaii. 
There  are  other  groups  whose  political  destiny  is  now 
linked  with  European  nations — the  Gilbert  Islands  with 
Great  Britain,  and  the  Marshall  and  Caroline  with 
Germany — which  have  long  been  under  the  careful 
training  of  missionary  teachers  from  America.  What- 
ever opinion  may  be  held  of  the  political  wisdom  of 
the  occupation  of  the  Philippines  by  the  United  States, 
there  is  no  valid  reason  to  doubt  that  beneficent  results 
are  most  assuredly  to  follow  in  those  islands  from  this 
foreign  occupation.  The  recognition  of  a  missionary 
obligation  on  the  part  of  American  Christianity  is, 
moreover,  a  strenuous  and  clearly  manifest  duty,  which 
may  be  regarded  as  already  fruitful  in  moral  good  and 
social  betterment  to  the  people  of  the  islands. 

Not  only  in  connection  with  diplomacy,  but  in  times 
of  war  and  public  calamity,  the  services  of  missionaries 
have  been  of  benefit.  During  the  mutinies  and  up- 
risings in  Uganda  they  have  sought  to  protect  life  and 
property.  At  the  siege  of  Peking  the  conspicuous  and 
brilliant  services  of  missionaries  in  defending  the  lega- 
tion, during  that  perilous  summer  of  1900,  were  uni- 


Missions  and  Diplomacy  33 

versally  acknowledged.  The  successful  issue  was  due 
in  no  small  measure  to  the  skillful  and  heroic  participa- 
tion of  missionaries  in  that  victorious  defense.  Not 
only  were  the  lives  of  the  ambassadors  saved,  but  inter- 
national consequences  were  averted  which  might  have 
precipitated  unparallelled  calamities.  There  is  a  mani- 
fest value,  moreover,  to  the  ministrations  of  mission- 
aries in  the  sphere  of  philanthropy.  In  times  of  famine, 
earthquake,  epidemics,  and  great  disasters,  sympathy 
and  help  are  given,  and  charitable  funds  administered. 
That  international  scourge  and  scandal  of  the  slave- 
trade  has  been  checked,  and  all  but  abolished,  largely 
through  the  helpful  cooperation  of  missionaries. 

In  the  promotion  and  establishment  of  peace  among 
the  nations  there  is  also  an  undoubted  value  to  the 
service  and  influence  of  missionaries.1  They  neither 
strive  nor  cry,  nor  is  their  voice  heard  in  the  streets, 
nor  have  they  the  power  of  diplomats  or  rulers  to  de- 
termine issues ;  but  they  nevertheless  do  a  quiet  and 
often  effective  and  unique  service  of  counsel,  concilia- 
tion, and  restraint.  The  work  that  they  do  in  pro- 
moting good  government  is,  moreover,  in  the  interests 
of  peace.  Mission  converts  are  men  of  peace,  not  the 
advocates  of  massacre  and  disorder.  They  are  inclined 
to  friendliness  and  forbearance  rather  than  to  treachery 
and  violence,  and  in  the  face  of  some  very  appreciable 
Oriental  perils  they  may  at  times  safeguard  as  hardly 
any  other  agency  can  both  the  lives  and  property  of 
foreigners.  The  Spectator,  of  London,  in  its  issue  of 
July  21,  1900,  in  a  thoughtful  article  on  "  The  Motive 
of  Oriental  Massacre,"  writes  as  follows  : 

1  "Missions  and   International   Peace,"  Professor  Cairns,    in   the 
International  Review  of  Missions,  April,  1912. 


34  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

"  Massacre  will  always  remain  the  grand  permanent 
danger  of  the  European  in  Asia.  He  will  always  be 
one  of  a  few,  the  Asiatic  will  always  be  one  of  a  multi- 
tude, and  the  temptation  of  the  multitude  to  be  done 
with  the  intruding  few  by  killing  them  all  out  will 
never  end.  Of  preventives,  there  is  but  one  which  can 
be  relied  on,  and  that  Europe  has  seldom  or  never  se- 
cured. A  great  native  caste  which  could  be  implicitly 
relied  on,  and  which  knew  every  emotion  of  the  people 
around  them,  could  probably  protect  the  Europeans  from 
any  outburst  of  sudden  death.  Ten  millions  of  Chris- 
tian natives  in  China  or  India,  for  instance,  would  be  for 
the  white  Christians  an  effective  unpaid  guard.    .    .    ." 

The  Moravians  in  their  work  in  Dutch  Guiana,  dur- 
ing the  latter  half  of  the  eighteenth  century,  and  until 
the  middle  of  the  nineteenth,  achieved  a  victory  over 
the  Bush  Negroes  which  was  a  boon  to  the  Dutch 
Government.  The  work  of  early  missionaries  in  South 
Africa  was  an  influential  factor  in  solving  native  prob- 
lems, and  promoting  their  peaceful  solution.  In  times 
of  disorder  and  massacre  in  the  Turkish  Empire  they 
have  acted  as  mediators,  pacificators,  and  saviours  of 
lives  and  property,  as  was  illustrated  by  the  services  of 
Calhoun,  Thomson,  Van  Dyck,  Eddy,  Jessup,  and  Bliss, 
in  Mount  Lebanon  during  the  troubles  of  1860,  and  by 
the  heroic  and  sacrificial  devotion  of  missionaries  dur- 
ing more  recent  massacres  in  Asia  Minor. 

The  exposition  and  accentuation  of  the  principles  of 
international  law  have  also  been  a  feature  of  missionary 
service.  Verbeck  did  important  preliminary  work  in 
this  direction  in  Japan,  and  Martin  in  China.  "When 
the  latter  went  to  reside  in  Peking,  in  1863,  he  carried 
with  him  a  translation  into  Chinese  of  Wheaton's  "  Ele- 


Missions  and  Diplomacy  35 

ments  of  International  Law."  This  was  welcomed  by 
the  Chinese  Foreign  Office  as  a  timely  guide  amid  the 
perplexities  arising  out  of  the  new  international  com- 
pacts into  which  they  had  just  entered.  Dr.  Martin 
supplemented  the  above  translation  by  Chinese  versions 
of  Woolsey,  Bluntschli,  and  Hall,  on  international  re- 
lations. Chalmers  taught  the  very  alphabet  of  the  law 
of  nations  to  the  natives  of  New  Guinea,  and,  in 
1899,  Secretary  Wardlaw  Thompson,  of  the  London 
Missionary  Society,  reported  the  interesting  fact  that 
Mr.  Abel,  one  of  their  missionaries  in  New  Guinea, 
was  instructing  the  people,  and  especially  the  school 
children,  "  to  repeat  a  brief  statement  of  the  British 
laws  which  has  been  prepared  for  the  benefit  of  all  the 
inhabitants  of  British  New  Guinea.  These  simple 
rules  of  conduct  are  learned  as  the  commandments  are 
learned,  and  thus  law  and  order  are  associated  with 
religion."  It  is  certainly  a  novel  feature  of  education 
and  of  religious  worship  to  associate  the  command- 
ments, the  creed,  and  the  laws  of  the  land,  in  an  all- 
round  summary  of  human  duty.  Here  seems  to  be  an 
admirable  hint  for  the  reformer  and  the  earnest  advo- 
cate of  higher  standards  of  citizenship. 

The  immensely  effective  and  beneficial  influence  of 
statesmanship,  largely  Christian  in  spirit,  in  evolving 
throughout  Christendom  that  remarkable  code  of 
national  chivalry — voluntary  in  its  sovereignty,  and 
sacred  in  its  dignity — which  we  have  come  to  designate 
as  international  law,  has  been  perpetuated  and  extended 
among  Asiatic  and  other  foreign  peoples  largely  by  the 
initiative  of  missionary  teachers  and  statesmen.  They 
have  sought  to  introduce  the  humane  provisions  of  that 
code  in  times  of  war,  and  they  have  secured  also  among 


36  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

many  savage  tribes  the  practical  recognition  of  another 
of  its  requirements,  the  safety  of  shipwrecked  mariners. 
On  the  other  hand,  missionaries  have  not  been  unmoved 
spectators  of  infractions  or  dubious  applications  of  the 
international  code  by  Western  powers  in  their  contact 
with  Oriental  nations.  The  missionary  protest  in  the 
face  of  some  notable  lapses  in  these  respects,  especially 
in  China,  has  been  vigorous  and  uncompromising.  On 
the  subject  of  opium  the  missionary  body  has  been  a 
unit,'and  this  is  substantially  true  also  of  their  opposition 
to  the  territorial  dismemberment  of  the  Chinese  Empire. 
It  would  thus  appear  that  to  the  messengers  of  the 
Gospel  in  mission  lands  has  long  been  assigned  an  inter- 
national role — not,  to  be  sure,  in  any  formal  or  official 
capacity,  but  as  contributors  incidentally,  and  some- 
times unconsciously,  to  the  sum  total  of  good-will  and 
friendship  among  the  nations.  They  have  borne  their 
part  in  promoting  kind  feeling  among  widely  separated 
races,  and  in  breaking  down  barriers  between  distant 
and  alien  peoples ;  they  have  also  struck  the  note  of 
brotherhood — stirring,  on  the  one  hand,  generous  im- 
pulses, and,  on  the  other,  awakening  gratitude.  They 
have  facilitated  diplomatic  relations,  and  aided  in  es- 
tablishing peaceful  and  mutually  beneficial  ties  among 
the  nations.  This  remarkable  service,  it  may  be  noted, 
has  been  coincident  with  monumental  changes  in  world 
politics  and  ethnic  intercourse,  brought  about  by 
discovery,  colonization,  and  commercial  enterprise. 
Missionary  expansion  has  thus  given  a  certain  impetus, 
as  well  as  kindly  tone,  to  that  interchange  of  intel- 
lectual, spiritual,  and  material  treasures  which  has 
become  the  unique  glory  of  our  age,  and  is  leading  on 
as  much  as  any  other  single  influence  to  the  goal  of 


Missions  and  Diplomacy  37 

universal  peace  and  unity.  Imperialism — an  inspira- 
tional force  among  the  nations — is  given  an  ethical 
significance,  and  directed  toward  a  sublime  ideal,  by 
this  international  leaven  of  missions.  Paul's  conception 
of  the  relationship  of  superior  to  inferior  races  has 
hardly  been  taken  seriously  as  having  any  function  in 
modern  diplomacy.  The  spirit  of  missions,  however, 
like  a  voice  crying  in  the  wilderness  of  international 
selfishness,  has  sought  diligently  to  promote  kindly 
consideration,  good-will,  and  fair  dealing,  and  endeav- 
oured faithfully  to  exemplify  them  in  its  own  sphere. 
That  great  missionary  apostle  and  statesman  regarded 
himself  as  "  debtor  "  even  "  to  the  barbarians  " — an 
aspect  of  interracial  obligation  which  has  been  to  a 
surprising  extent  a  negligible  consideration  in  the  dip- 
lomatic intercourse  of  the  nations. 

Some  who  may  be  inclined  to  regard  this  view  of 
the  matter  as  not  within  the  range  of  practical  politics 
may,  moreover,  take  exception  to  it  on  the  ground  that 
there  seems  to  be  evidence  that  missions  are  distinctly 
a  disturbing  element  in  international  intercourse,  and, 
therefore,  they  cannot  be  regarded  as  contributing 
toward  the  establishment  of  friendly  relationships. 
We  shall  not  undertake  to  call  in  question  the  fact  that 
in  exceptional  circumstances,  under  the  pressure  of 
misunderstandings,  or  as  the  outcome  of  religious 
fanaticism,  the  entrance  of  Christianity  has  been  un- 
welcome, and  awakened  more  or  less  violence.  This  is 
natural,  perhaps  inevitable,  and  historical  precedents 
wTould  lead  us  to  expect  it ;  it  seems  to  be  incidental  to 
the  propagation  of  Christianity.  And  yet,  so  long  as 
the  missionary  teacher  is  within  recognized  and  ac- 
knowledged treaty  rights,   and  does  not    transgress 


38  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

international  agreements,  he  is  not  called  upon  to  refrain 
from  pursuing  his  calling  by  any  purely  deferential 
restraints.  So  long,  also,  as  his  appeal  is  only  to  the 
reason  and  free  moral  nature  of  man,  without  attempt- 
ing to  exact  an  unwilling  adherence  by  any  expedient 
which  forces  the  conscience,  he  is  strictly  within  the 
bounds  of  that  universal  exercise  of  moral  freedom 
which  belongs  to  man  as  man.  It  is  not  in  fairness  or 
justice  within  the  sovereign  rights  of  any  government, 
despotic  or  liberal,  to  exercise  lordship  over  the  con- 
science in  the  realm  of  religious  freedom,  so  long  as  that 
freedom  is  not  made  an  instrument  of  criminal  license. 
That  would  be  to  usurp  a  power  which  belongs  to  God 
alone,  and  which  He  has  never  delegated  to  human 
rulers.  As  a  religious  teacher  of  God's  truth  and  God's 
law  of  righteous  living,  using  only  the  moral  instru- 
mentalities of  appeal  and  persuasion,  the  Christian 
missionary  has  the  right  of  way  the  world  over. 
Within  his  proper  limitations  he  is  unimpeachable  as  a 
moral  force  among  men.  The  highest  authority  which 
mankind  is  called  upon  to  acknowledge  has  commis- 
sioned him  to  discharge  a  duty  which  is  sui  generis  in 
history.  He  may  be  hindered,  opposed,  persecuted, 
and  martyred,  but  his  credentials  are  authoritative,  and 
cannot  be  destroyed.  He  may  be  silenced  temporarily, 
or  banished  for  a  time,  but  his  opportunity  is  certain  to 
come,  and  he  is  bound  to  avail  himself  of  it. 

It  becomes  him,  under  these  exceptional  conditions, 
to  discharge  his  duty  with  meekness,  patience,  and  tact, 
to  exemplify  in  his  own  character  and  conduct  the 
wisdom,  gentleness,  and  sincerity  of  the  religion  he 
teaches,  and  to  seek  only  moral  victory  by  legitimate 
spiritual    means.     Where    the    missionary   service    is 


Missions  and  Diplomacy  on 

rendered  in  this  spirit  it  is  rarely,  if  ever,  offensive, 
and  any  possibility  of  disturbing  international  good- 
will is  reduced  to  a  minimum.  In  fact,  the  charge 
which  has  sometimes  been  indiscriminately  made,  that 
missions  are  the  cause  of  international  alienation,  has 
been  greatly  exaggerated.  There  has  been  much  mis- 
understanding on  this  point,  and  some  considerable 
misrepresentation.  The  conspicuous  illustration,  of 
course,  has  been  China,  and  on  the  basis  of  a  false 
induction,  a  sweeping  and  railing  accusation  has  been 
made  against  missions  in  general  as  a  cause  of  trouble 
among  the  nations.  "While  it  is  no  doubt  true  that  the 
political  assumptions  of  Roman  Catholic  missions  in 
China  are  offensive  to  the  Chinese  officials,  yet  it  can 
be  safely  said  that  Christianity,  as  exemplified  in 
Protestant  missions,  exercising  its  simple  and  legiti- 
mate function  as  a  teacher  in  the  sphere  of  morals  and 
religion,  is  guiltless  in  the  matter  of  political  meddling. 
It  is  far  from  the  desire  of  Protestant  missionaries  to 
obtain  any  such  preferential  treatment  as  the  Roman 
Catholic  missionaries  have  secured  through  the  French 
Government,  but  the  adequate  protection  guaranteed 
by  all  treaties  to  foreigners  residing  in  China  should 
surely  not  be  denied  to  missionaries  living  strictly 
within  treaty  privileges,  and  in  no  way  transgressing 
the  laws  of  China.  These  rights  have  sometimes  been 
so  outrageously  violated,  not  only  in  China  but  also  in 
Turkey,  that  missionaries  have  been  obliged  to  appeal 
to  our  government  in  defense  of  their  treaty  standing. 
There  is  nothing  unbecoming  in  asking  such  protection, 
which  is  in  fact  not  only  an  act  of  justifiable  self- 
defense  of  their  own  citizenship,  but  also  contributory 
to  the  safety  and  welfare  of  all  foreign  residents. 


40  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

In  fact,  the  missionary,  all  things  considered,  has 
made  it  safer  and  more  possible  than  it  would  other- 
wise have  been  for  all  foreigners  to  reside  in  China. 
Numerous  friendly  acts  and  proclamations  by  high 
officials  of  the  empire,  since  the  convulsions  of  1900, 
have  indicated  a  specially  kindly  feeling  to  mission- 
aries. The  Missionary  Peace  Commission  of  1901,  in 
Shansi,  is  a  remarkable  evidence  of  the  respect  and 
consideration  shown  to  missionaries  by  many  Chinese 
officials  since  the  troubles  of  1900.  The  recent  open- 
ing of  Hunan  and  Hupeh  by  the  missionaries  of  the 
London  Society  has  reclaimed,  in  a  measure,  an  im- 
mense section  of  China  to  foreign  residence,  which 
will  be  a  boon  both  to  missions  and  commerce. 

At  the  Seventh  Annual  Conference  of  Foreign 
Mission  Boards  of  the  United  States  and  Canada,  held 
in  New  York  City,  January,  1899,  a  report  was  pre- 
sented embodying  the  results  of  a  careful  canvass  of 
mission  fields  throughout  the  world  as  to  the  attitude 
of  civil  governments  toward  Christian  missions  and 
missionaries  wherever  they  had  been  established.  The 
report  revealed  the  fact,  and  recent  history  has  con- 
firmed it,  that  almost  without  exception  the  world 
over  the  attitude  of  local  governments  was  friendly 
and  helpful,  with  few  signs  of  friction  and  opposition. 
In  view  of  the  many  regrettable  incidents  in  the  con- 
tact of  Western  nations  with  Eastern  peoples,  and  the 
objectionable  personal  example  and  conduct  of  many 
foreigners  residing  in  the  East,  the  outcome  above 
indicated  is  especially  significant,  and  speaks  much  for 
the  respect  accredited  to  missions  and  their  represent- 
atives. 


II 

The  Missionary  Factor  in  Colonial  History 


L 


The  aspect  of  missionary  work  must  always  be  one  of  two  kinds.  In 
the  first  instance  we  all  think  of  the  individual  souls  for  whose  benefit  the 
missionary  works,  and  I  should  be  very  sorry  if  it  should  be  imagined 
that  I  am  leaving  that  point  of  view  out  of  sight.  On  the  contrary,  we 
must  believe  that  he  who  goes  out  preaching  the  Gospel  has  a  message 
for  every  individual  soul  of  man.  But  having  premised  that  much,  there 
is  now  a  disposition — and  perhaps  it  is  a  providentially  guided  disposition 
— to  look  at  missionary  work  not  from  the  standpoint  of  the  salvation  of 
the  individual,  but  from  the  standpoint  also  of  the  ultimate  destiny  of  the 
world  at  large.     .     .     . 

To  bring  the  individual  to  the  knowledge  of  what  Christ  is  to  him, 
that  is  a  great  work.  But  surely  it  is  also  a  great  work  to  show  the 
necessity,  from  the  standpoint  of  a  nation,  of  the  existence  of  great  ideals 
which  mean  protection  of  the  ordinary  maxims  of  morality,  which  mean 
the  recognition  of  a  Power  greater  than  ourselves  that  is  dominating  and 
directing  the  world,  which  mean  the  reverence  for  life  and  the  reverence 
for  God. 

The  Rt.  Rev.  W.  Boyd  Carpenter,  D.  D. 

Perhaps  the  most  astonishing  thing  of  late  years  about  foreign  missions 
is  the  different  way  in  which  they  have  come  to  be  regarded  both  from 
without  and  from  within.  The  work  itself  has  been  going  on  now  for 
many  years,  steadily,  patiently,  developing  on  this  side  and  on  that,  with- 
out any  great  crises  or  radical  changes  of  attitude  or  method.  But  sud- 
denly the  outside  world  has  become  aware  of  what  the  missionaries  really 
mean  and  of  what  they  are  actually  accomplishing ;  and  the  missionaries 
themselves,  though  perhaps  with  not  quite  the  same  suddenness,  have 
come  to  look  straight  at  their  own  work  and  see  it  not  as  a  vague  saving 
of  the  souls  of  the  heathen,  but  as  what  it  really  is — the  soul  of  Christian 
civilization  labouring  to  spread  itself  throughout  the  entire  human  race. 

Duncan  Black  Macdonald,  D.  D. 


II 

THE  MISSIONARY  FACTOR  IN  COLONIAL 
HISTORY  ■ 

IN  estimating  the  influence  of  missions  in  the 
world,  and  in  fixing  the  scope  of  their  activities, 
it  has  been  customary  to  regard  them  as  dedicated 
to  the  extension  of  the  kingdom  of  Christ  by  means  of 
individual  conversion  and  the  planting  of  the  Church 
in  mission  lands.  This  point  of  view  is  truly  evangel- 
ical, and  in  harmony  with  the  mind  of  Christ  and  the 
promptings  of  His  Word,  and  should  ever  hold  its 
place  in  the  Christian  heart  as  the  highest  incentive  to 
devout  earnestness  in  this  special  line  of  activity.  The 
historic  record  of  missions,  however,  presents  points  of 
view  supplementary  to  this  essential  aspect,  and  reveals 
vistas  of  influence  ramifying  in  various  directions,  and 
issuing  in  manifold  results  which  fill  a  large  place  in 
the  general  progress  of  the  world.  It  is  now  easily 
discoverable  that  missions  have  had  in  the  past,  and  no 
doubt  will  continue  to  have,  not  only  a  spiritual  and 
religious  function,  but  that  they  have  been  an  evolu- 
tionary force  especially  owned  and  used  of  God  for 
helping  mankind  toward  the  goal  of  broad  culture, 
political  freedom,  commercial  prosperity,  scientific 
attainment,  and  social  betterment,  to  an  extent  which 
is  already  most  encouraging,  and  which  will  be  more 
and  more  recognized  as  time  goes  on. 

1  Auburn  Seminary  Review,  May,  1904. 
43 


44  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

Since  missions  have  been  to  such  an  extent  identified 
in  the  minds  of  their  supporters  with  the  churchly 
aspects  of  history,  the  expectation  of  and  the  search  for 
results  have  been  hitherto  confined  largely  within  the 
limits  of  religious  expansion,  and  the  visible  fruitage  of 
Christian  effort  as  it  appears  in  individual  conversions. 
This  should  be  in  no  sense  deprecated,  since  if  this 
single  aspect  of  the  case  were  studied  and  appreciated 
as  it  might  be,  the  Church  at  large  would  find  much 
more  encouragement  and  cheer  in  the  prosecution  of 
its  task  than  at  present  it  enjoys.  If,  however,  a 
larger  and  more  searching  investigation  be  made  into 
the  historic  outcome  of  missions,  it  will  yield  additional 
and  deeply  suggestive  intimations  of  the  full  providen- 
tial design  and  value  of  the  missionary  factor  as  a  divine 
force  commissioned  by  God  to  far-reaching,  though  un- 
obtrusive, activities  in  the  shaping  and  unfolding  of 
history.  In  the  sphere  of  discovery  and  exploration,  in 
the  development  of  backward  races,  in  the  moulding  of 
national  life,  in  the  shaping  of  political  destiny,  in  the 
reformation  of  administrative  methods,  the  training  of 
public  servants,  the  reconstruction  of  judicial  systems, 
especially  among  barbaric  races,  the  opening  of  com- 
mercial doors,  the  promotion  of  international  diplomacy 
and  commercial  intercourse,  and  in  the  ethical  and 
social  regeneration  of  ancient  communities  of  mankind 
still  moving  slowly  and  wearily  toward  a  higher  civi- 
lization, missions  have  wrought  marvellously,  and  we 
will  discover  more  and  more  as  time  goes  on  their  value 
along  these  lines  of  influence. 

In  the  study  of  this  theme  we  desire  to  trace  out  a 
single  thread  of  missionary  influence,  woven  among 
many  others  by  God  into  the  early  history  of  our  own 


The  Missionary  Factor  in  Colonial  History    45 

country.  The  missionary  factor  in  our  colonial  history 
is  not  conspicuous  nor  obtrusive,  yet  it  can  be  dis- 
tinctly noted.  It  has  not  always  received  the  attention 
it  deserves  from  the  political  student  and  scholar,  and 
even  the  reverent  religious  investigator  has  generally 
placed  the  emphasis  very  naturally  on  the  Puritan  im- 
pulse, the  eager  search  for  soul  liberty  and  religious 
freedom,  and  the  desire  to  found  a  state  where  un- 
trammelled religious  and  civil  development  along  their 
own  lines  would  be  possible.  In  some  of  these  histories 
the  earlier  voyages  toward  the  unknown  West  have 
been  credited  solely  to  the  love  of  adventure  and  the 
hopes  of  an  El  Dorado,  and  even  in  the  case  of  the 
English  Puritans,  rivalry  of  Spain  and  a  desire  to  out- 
strip other  nations  in  the  search  for  coveted  possessions, 
are  apparently  regarded  as  the  only  motives  worthy  of 
accentuation.  The  world  then,  as  now,  contained  a 
mixture  of  good  and  evil.  There  were  men  of  high 
ideals  and  Christian  impulses,  and  others  of  low  ideals 
and  unscrupulous  designs.  We  are  confessedly  search- 
ing for  the  former  class,  as  we  may  be  able  to  find  them 
in  colonial  times. 

It  would  not,  however,  be  wise  or  historically  correct 
in  this  connection  to  exalt  unduly,  or  to  exploit  in  a 
partisan  spirit  the  missionary  impulse  as  if  it  were  a 
dominant  and  overshadowing  motive,  but  neither,  on 
the  other  hand,  should  it  be  ignored  or  forgotten.  It 
can  be  clearly  traced  in  official  documents  which  form 
the  bases  of  early  movements  in  colonization,  but  in 
some  instances  it  was  slow  in  asserting  itself  amid  the 
difficulties,  sufferings,  and  perils  of  the  life  and  death 
struggles  of  early  colonists.  Aggressive  movements 
under  the  circumstances  were  almost  impossible,  and 


46  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

missionary  activities  were  of  necessity  dormant  until 
more  settled  times  opened  the  door  of  opportunity. 
Puritan  hearts  were  undoubtedly  stirring  with  mission- 
ary aspirations  when  they  turned  their  prows  west- 
ward :  this  was  especially  true  of  many  of  the  finest 
and  noblest  spirits  among  them  ;  but  when  they  touched 
these  shores  they  found  themselves  for  a  time  face  to 
face  with  almost  insurmountable  obstacles  to  the  pros- 
ecution of  missionary  work.  As  time  went  on,  the 
spiritual  life  of  the  Church  for  various  reasons  lapsed 
somewhat ;  its  strenuousness  relaxed.  Missionary  ef- 
fort, however,  was  fairly  under  way  as  early  as  the  time 
of  Eliot,  who  arrived  in  1631,  and  was  continued  by 
devoted  men  until  the  great  awakening  which  cul- 
minated in  1741.  This,  barring  its  ecclesiastical  par- 
tisanship, and  irregular  excesses  on  the  part  of  some 
excited  promoters,  was  a  blessed  revival  of  religious 
feeling,  and  a  stimulus  to  religious  activities. 

It  may  be  noted  here  that  far  back  of  colonial  his- 
tory there  is  at  least  a  credible  tradition  received  as 
probable  by  some  careful  historians,  that  America  itself 
was  in  a  sense  a  missionary  discovery  about  five  hun- 
dred years  before  Columbus  and  Cabot,  and  six  hundred 
before  the  advent  of  the  Pilgrim  Fathers.  According 
to  the  Sagas,  Leif  Ericson,  a  Norse  missionary,  dis- 
covered and  touched  these  shores  about  1000  a.  d. 
Leif  was  the  son  of  Eric  the  Red,  who  was  the  first 
colonist  of  Greenland.  While  on  a  visit  to  Norway, 
Leif  was  commissioned  by  King  Olaf  to  proclaim 
Christianity  in  Greenland.  The  account  in  the  Sagas 
reads  as  follows  :  "  Upon  one  occasion  the  King  [Olaf  ] 
came  to  speech  with  Leif,  and  asks  him,  '  Is  it  thy  pur- 
pose to  sail  to  Greenland  in  the  summer  ?  '     *  It  is  my 


The  Missionary  Factor  in  Colonial  History    47 

purpose,'  said  Leif,  '  if  it  be  your  will.'  '  I  believe  it 
will  be  well,'  answers  the  King,  '  and  thither  thou  shalt 
go  upon  my  errand  to  proclaim  Christianity  there.'  " 
Omitting  here  a  few  lines  for  the  sake  of  brevity,  we 
quote  further  from  the  Sagas :  "  Leif  put  to  sea  when 
his  ship  was  ready  for  the  voyage.  For  a  long  time  he 
was  tossed  about  upon  the  ocean,  and  came  upon  lands 
of  which  he  had  previously  no  knowledge.  There 
were  self-sown  wheat  fields  and  vines  growing  there." 
It  is  not  necessary  to  give  the  account  in  full.  It  is 
clear  that  it  was  on  his  voyage  to  Greenland  on  a  mis- 
sionary errand  that  he  was  driven  by  storms,  as  seems 
probable,  upon  the  coast  of  America,  supposedly  the 
shores  of  Nova  Scotia  or  New  England,  as  he  found 
"  self-sown  wheat  fields  and  vines  growing  there." 
This  discovery  was  a  stimulus  to  subsequent  exploring 
expeditions  from  Greenland  to  "  Wineland  the  Good," 
accounts  of  which  are  given  in  the  Saga  of  Eric  the 
Red.  If  this  is  all  true,  America  itself  in  this  indirect 
and  casual  way  was  a  missionary  discovery,  and  may  be 
so  entered  in  the  annals  of  that  kingdom  which  is 
destined  to  conquer  the  world.  Subsequently,  in  the 
eighteenth  century,  Greenland  was  linked  with  Den- 
mark by  the  missionary  devotion  of  Hans  Egede.  The 
Moravians  followed,  and  gave  themselves  in  long  and 
faithful  labours  upon  those  inhospitable  shores.  Their 
phenomenal  success  has  made  Greenland  a  place  of 
memorable  interest  in  missionary  annals.  Labrador 
was  reached  by  Jens  Haven  in  1765.  Grants  of  land 
were  made  to  the  Moravians  by  George  III,  in  1769, 
and  every  year  since  1771  a  missionary  ship  has  sailed 
back  and  forth  from  England  to  the  lonely  haunts  of 
the  missionaries  on  that  bleak  coast,  without  reporting 


48  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

during  all  this  period  a  single  fatal  accident.  Twelve 
different  ships  have  been  in  use,  five  of  them  bearing 
the  name  of  Harmony.  All  of  them  have  been  sailing 
vessels,  except  the  one  last  built,  which  has  auxiliary 
steam  power. 

When  the  era  of  maritime  exploration  began,  in  the 
fifteenth  century,  Prince  Henry  the  Navigator,  of 
Portugal,  a  brilliant  pioneer  of  modern  discovery,  at 
whose  instigation  others  undertook  the  bold  voyages 
which  opened  the  pathway  of  early  colonization  and 
commerce,  was  himself  under  the  spell  of  the  mission- 
ary motive.  He  was  a  true  Christian,  an  evangelistic 
crusader,  and  the  purpose  of  propagating  the  Gospel, 
although  no  doubt  other  motives  and  ambitions  were 
present,  occupied  a  prominent  place  in  his  mind  and 
heart.  Among  the  reasons  which  he  gave  for  pushing 
his  discoveries  was  "  his  great  desire  to  make  increase 
in  the  faith  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ."  His  supporters 
and  patrons  were  largely  the  clergy  and  men  of  high 
religious  character,  while  the  statesmen  and  the  general 
public  of  his  day  took  but  a  lukewarm  interest  in  his 
venturesome  enterprises.  Numerous  contemporary  rec- 
ords testify  to  the  sincerity  of  his  desire  to  spread  the 
Gospel  to  unknown  regions.  Campbell,  in  his  "  Mari- 
time Discovery  and  Christian  Missions,"  says  of  him  : 
"  This  great  prince  was  clearly  raised  up  by  heaven  for 
the  performance  of  the  exalted  part  assigned  him  ;  and 
when  the  last  abode  of  savage  man  shall  have  been  dis- 
covered, when  the  voice  of  the  missionary  shall  have 
sounded  the  accents  of  mercy  in  every  ear  of  the  human 
family,  when  the  Gospel  of  Christ  shall  have  subdued 
the  earth,  and  blended  all  nations  into  one,  when  an 
enlightened  and  Christian  commerce  shall  have  waved 


The  Missionary  Factor  in  Colonial  History    49 

her  flag  on  every  shore,  and  diffused  her  blessings 
through  every  clime,  then  an  instructed  and  liberated, 
and  a  regenerated  world  will  exhibit  the  consummation 
of  the  work  begun  by  Don  Henry,  Duke  of  Viseo." 

Columbus  was  not  a  missionary  in  the  ordinary  ac- 
ceptation of  the  term,  but  the  evangelistic  motive,  as  is 
manifest  from  his  own  statements,  had  a  distinct 
influence  in  his  career,  and  he  was  fond  of  accentuating 
the  literal  meaning  of  his  own  first  name — Christopher 
— the  Christ-Bearer.  His  journal  during  his  voyage 
contains  repeated  intimations  that  he  desired  and  sought 
the  conversion  to  Christianity  of  the  strange  peoples  of 
the  West,1  although  the  extant  writings  of  Colum- 
bus previous  to  undertaking  his  first  voyage  do  not  seem 
to  throw  clear  light  upon  the  subject.  There  is  much 
probability,  however,  that  the  missionary  motive  was 
even  then  in  his  mind,  and  was  overshadowed  by  those 
political  and  commercial  considerations  which  seemed 
to  be  the  most  persuasive  means  of  pushing  his  scheme 
and  overcoming  his  difficulties.  Some  historians,  never- 
theless, find  a  basis  for  the  statement  that  one  of  the 
most  effective  arguments  used  by  Columbus  to  induce 
Queen  Isabella  to  extend  her  patronage  to  him  was 
that  "she  might  eminently  contribute  to  diffuse  the 
light  and  truth  of  the  Gospel." 

In  his  journal  as  reproduced  for  us  by  Las  Casas,  we 
find  in  a  paragraph  written  after  his  discovery  of  the 
new    world,   under   date  of    jSovember   6,    1-192,  the 

1  Sources  will  be  found  in  Winsor's  "  Narrative  and  Critical  History 
of  America,"  Vol.  II ;  Winsor's  "Life  of  Christopher  Columbus  "  ;  and 
especially  in  a  valuable  article  on  "The  Religious  Motives  of  Christo- 
pher Columbus,"  by  Prof.  W.  R.  and  Rev.  C.  R.  Gillett,  in  the  "  Papers 
of  the  American  Society  of  Church  History,"  Vol.  IV,  pp.  3-26. 


50  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

following :  "  I  am  convinced  .  .  .  that  if  devout 
religious  persons  knew  their  [the  Indians']  language, 
they  might  be  converted  to  Christ,  and  so  I  hope  in 
our  Lord  that  your  Highnesses  [addressing  the  King 
and  Queen]  will  decide  upon  this  course  with  much 
diligence." 

Under  date  of  November  27th  is  inserted  a  distinct 
purpose  "  to  Christianize  all  these  people,  because  it  can 
easily  be  done.  .  .  .  And  I  assert,"  he  goes  on  to 
say,  "  that  your  Highnesses  ought  not  to  allow  any 
except  Catholic  Christians  to  set  foot  or  trade  here, 
since  this  was  the  aim  and  inception  of  the  undertaking, 
that  it  should  be  for  the  increase  and  glory  of  the 
Christian  religion  ;  and  likewise  none  should  be  allowed 
to  come  to  these  parts  except  they  be  good  Christians." 

In  the  letter  of  Columbus  to  Lord  Kafael  Sanches 
(perhaps  more  correctly  Lord  Gabriel),  treasurer  of 
Ferdinand  and  Isabella,  King  and  Queen  of  Spain, 
giving  an  account  of  his  first  voyage,  Columbus  writes 
of  what  he  conceives  "  to  be  the  principal  wish  of  our 
most  serene  King,  namely  the  conversion  of  these 
people  to  the  holy  faith  of  Christ."  In  conclusion,  he 
calls  upon  the  King  and  Queen  and  others  to  rejoice 
"in  the  prospect  of  the  salvation  of  the  souls  of  so 
many  nations  hitherto  lost."  ' 

In  his  letter  to  the  Spanish  sovereigns,  written  sup- 
posedly after  his  return  from  his  first  voyage,  is  a 
paragraph  urging  that  in  the  new  colony  "  there  be  a 
church,  and  abbes  and  priests  to  administer  the  sacra- 
ments and  conduct  divine  worship,  and  to  convert  the 
Indians." 

In  the  "  Instructions "  given  to  Columbus  by  the 
'Major's  "Select  Letters  of  Christopher  Columbus,"  pp.  10  and  17. 


The  Missionary  Factor  in  Colonial  History     51 

sovereigns,  in  anticipation  of  his  return  to  Espanola,  he 
is  commanded  and  charged  "  that  in  all  ways  and 
manners  possible  he  shall  work  and  strive  to  attract  the 
dwellers  in  the  said  islands  and  mainland  to  be  con- 
verted to  our  Holy  Catholic  Faith." 

It  was  one  of  the  mediaeval  conceits  of  the  papacy 
that  the  popes,  by  virtue  of  the  supreme  sovereignty 
they  claimed  over  the  unknown  world,  could  bestow 
upon  Catholic  rulers  formal  title  and  right  of  possession 
to  any  newly  discovered  lands,  on  condition  that  they 
would  propagate  there  the  Catholic  religion.  After 
the  return  of  Columbus,  Ferdinand  and  Isabella  sought 
at  once  the  sanction  of  the  Pope  to  their  sovereign 
domination  over  the  vague  regions  he  had  visited.  The 
supreme  Pontiff  at  that  time  was  Alexander  VI,  a 
Spaniard  of  the  Spaniards,  who  issued  four  bulls,  en- 
titled, respectively,  the  Bulls  of  Concession,  referring  to 
the  first  two,  issued  on  the  same  day,  May  3,  1493, 
the  Bull  of  Demarcation,  and  the  Bull  of  Extension.1 
The  first  two  gave  title  to  newly  discovered  lands  not 
already  under  the  control  of  Christian  rulers ;  the  third 
established  a  line  of  demarcation  limiting  the  title  to 
lands  westward  and  southward  of  the  said  line,  so  as 
not  to  encroach  upon  the  Azores  and  the  Cape  Verde 
Islands,  belonging  to  Portugal,  and  the  fourth  extended 
the  title  to  discoveries  in  the  East  as  well  as  the  West, 
even  as  far  as  India,  not  found  to  be  already  under  the 
control  of  Christian  monarchs.  The  confusion  arising 
from  this  last  bull,  which  overlapped  the  others,  was 

1  Translations  of  the  Bulls  of  Alexander  VI  are  found  in  Vol.  I  of 
"The  Philippine  Islands,  1493-1803,"  by  Blair  and  Robertson,  pp. 
97-114.  Publishers,  Arthur  H.  Clark  Company,  Cleveland,  Ohio, 
1903. 


52  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

subsequently  adjusted  by  treaties  between  Spain  and 
Portugal.  The  conversion  of  the  natives  to  the  Cath- 
olic faith  is  much  emphasized  in  these  bulls,  and  the 
Catholic  kings  are  charged  with  this  duty. 

These  documents,  professing  to  distribute  America 
amongthe  rulers  of  Catholic  Europe,  obtained  recogni- 
tion by  Spain  and  Portugal,  but  were  looked  upon  with 
indifference,  if  not  contempt,  by  England,  France,  and 
Holland,  who  went  on  with  their  discoveries,  and  estab- 
lished their  sovereignty  by  right  of  occupation  and 
conquest,  as  if  no  popes  had  ever  undertaken  to  parcel 
out  the  world.  It  is  worthy  of  note,  in  passing,  that 
the  Spanish  occupation  of  the  Philippines,  first  under 
Magellan,  in  1521,  and  afterward  under  Legaspi,  in 
1565,  was  in  part  a  missionary  venture.  Legaspi's  ex- 
pedition, inspired  by  Philip  II  of  Spain,  sailed  from 
the  Pacific  coast  of  Mexico,  and  was  accompanied 
by  six  Augustinian  monks,  charged  with  missionary 
duties.1  This  was  the  beginning  of  a  missionary  inva- 
sion which,  cooperating  with  the  military  forces,  se- 
cured the  Philippines  to  Spain  and  the  Catholic  Church 
for  subsequent  centuries,  until  they  became  United 
States  territory. 

Following  Columbus,  Bartolome  de  Las  Casas  was  an 
undoubted  exponent  of  the  missionary  impulse,  win- 
ning the  title  of  the  "  Apostle  of  the  West  Indies." 
Spanish  friars  and  Jesuits  made  several  efforts  to  plant 
missions  in  the  southern  parts  of  North  America,  but 
little  came  of  this  until,  in  the  eighteenth  century,  their 
establishments  in  Texas,  New  Mexico,  and  California 
met  with  more  success.     The  outcome  of  these  early 

1  Blair  and  Robertson,  "The  Philippine  Islands,  1493-1803,"  Vol. 
II,  pp.  89  and  161-168. 


The  Missionary  Factor  in  Colonial  History     53 

Spanish  missions,  ^although  numerous  and  imposing 
churches  and  mission  edifices  were  built,  was,  however, 
of  little  permanent  value  to  our  country.  The  priests 
were  strict  formalists,  and  the  Indian  as  a  man  or  a 
citizen  was  but  slightly  changed  in  character  by  their 
ministrations.  Dark  and  unworthy  as  the  history  of 
Spanish  colonization  has  been,  and  the  same  may  be 
said  of  the  Portuguese  in  South  America,  both  have 
clearly  been  indebted,  nevertheless,  to  the  missionary 
spirit  for  many  courageous  impulses,  and  for  many 
truly  devoted  personalities  who  were  conspicuous  in 
their  early  ventures.1 

It  is  a  part  of  the  history  of  those  times  that  the 
missionary  efforts  of  that  age  were  identified  with  the 
Roman  Catholic  propaganda,  and  that  duplicity,  mili- 
tary aggression,  and  cruel  injustice  marred  to  a  painful 
extent  their  missionary  programme.  This,  however, 
should  in  no  way  blind  us  to  the  transcendent  import 
of  the  historic  outcome.  The  fact  that  there  were 
many  unworthy  adventurers,  whose  careers  were 
marked  by  greed  and  unrighteousness,  should  not  ob- 
literate the  clear  evidence  which  assures  us  of  the 
presence  of  the  missionary  incentive,  however  mis- 
taken its  methods,  in  the  hearts  of  those  to  whom  due 
credit  should  be  given  as  leaders  and  pioneers  in  that 


1  John  Austin  Stevens  in  a  chapter  contributed  by  him  to  Wiusor's 
"  Narrative  and  Critical  History  "  writes  as  follows  : 

"The  primary  idea  of  French,  as  of  Spanish,  colonization  was  the 
conversion  of  the  heathen  tribes.  The  first  empire  sought  was  that  of 
the  soul ;  the  priests  were  the  pioneers  of  exploration.  The  natives  of 
the  soil  were  to  be  first  converted,  then  brought,  if  possible,  through 
this  subtle  influence  into  alliance  with  the  home  government " 
(Winsor,  Vol.  Ill,  p.  393). 


54  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

great  campaign  of  discovery  which  led  on  to  some  of 
the  most  glorious  events  in  modern  history. 

"  The  Jesuit  Kelations  and  Allied  Documents,"  a 
ponderous  library  of  historical  records  concerning  the 
early  history  of  French  colonization  in  America,  re- 
veals to  us  the  immense  and  prolonged  contribution  of 
Roman  Catholic  missionaries  toward  the  establish- 
ment of  that  international  rapport  not  only  between 
France,  but  also  between  the  entire  learned  and  diplo- 
matic world  of  Europe,  and  French  America,  for  nearly 
two  hundred  years.  The  footsteps  of  those  indefatiga- 
ble missionary  pioneers  can  be  traced  for  the  larger 
part  of  two  centuries  (1625-1791)  along  the  St.  Law- 
rence, and  on  both  sides  of  the  Great  Lakes,  on  into 
the  far  "West.  They  deflected  southward  into  Maine, 
into  Illinois,  and  even  as  far  as  Louisiana,  and  pene- 
trated northward  toward  the  inhospitable,  icy  wilder- 
ness of  Hudson  Bay.  Parkman,  in  his  volume  en- 
titled, "The  Jesuits  in  North  America  in  the  Seven- 
teenth Century,"  and  in  other  of  his  historical  works, 
has  given  much  space  to  Jesuit  history.  "Whatever 
difficulty  we  may  have  with  their  methods,  and  the 
barren  spiritual  results  of  their  labours,  their  devotion, 
diligence,  and  sacrifice  in  those  earlier  and  purer  days 
of  Jesuit  enterprise  represent  a  high- water  mark  in  the 
missionary  annals  of  the  world,  and  their  services  to 
exploration  and  discovery  occupy  a  place  of  permanent 
value  in  the  history  of  this  continent.  Pere  Marquette, 
Jean  de  Brebeuf,  Garnier,  Chatelain,  Jogues,  Raym- 
bault,  and  Lallemant  are  well-known  names  among 
them.  The  first-named  was  the  discoverer  of  the  Mis- 
sissippi above  the  confluence  of  the  Missouri,  but  one 
hundred    and    thirty-two  years   after   De    Soto    had 


The  Missionary  Factor  in  Colonial  History    55 

reached  it  in  the  far  south.  Hennepin,  of  the  Recol- 
lets,  was  also  famous  for  his  explorations.  Pere  Mar- 
quette's name  is  familiar  to-day  in  Michigan  as  identi- 
fied with  a  city,  a  county,  and  a  railway  of  that  state, 
and  his  statue  stands  in  the  rotunda  of  the  Capitol  in 
"Washington.  Hennepin  is  the  name  of  one  of  the 
most  important  counties  of  Minnesota. 

In  some  instances  the  political  and  military  leaders 
of  Kew  France  were  in  hearty  sympathy  with  the 
religious  aims  of  the  missionaries.  Champlain  was  a 
man  of  fervent  piety  and  missionary  zeal.  He  is  credited 
by  Parkman  with  the  remark  that  "  the  saving  of  a 
soul  is  worth  more  than  the  conquest  of  an  empire." 
In  sympathy  with  this  intense  propaganda  there  was  a 
great  awakening  of  missionary  enthusiasm  in  France. 
Immense  endowments,  chiefly  in  the  shape  of  land 
grants,  were  secured,  the  benefits  of  which  accrued  to 
Canada  during  the  Roman  Catholic  succession,  long  after 
the  departure  of  the  Jesuits.  "  ALL  France,"  writes 
Parkman,  referring  to  the  days  of  Jesuit  influence, 
"  was  filled  with  the  zeal  of  proselytism.  Men  and 
women  of  exalted  rank  lent  their  countenance  to  the 
holy  work.  From  many  an  altar  daily  petitions  were 
offered  for  the  well-being  of  the  mission ;  and  in  the 
Holy  House  of  MontxMartre  a  nun  lay  prostrate  day 
and  night  before  the  shrine,  praying  for  the  conversion 
of  Canada.  In  one  convent  thirty  nuns  offered  them- 
selves for  the  labours  of  the  wilderness ;  and  priests 
flocked  in  crowds  to  the  colony."  There  was  a  singular 
and  hardly  commendable  mixture  of  religious  enthusiasm 
and  political  subserviency  in  this  propaganda,  yet  there 
is  no  doubt  that  colonial  history,  far-reaching  in  its  im- 
port, was  made  by  these  missionary  enthusiasts. 


56  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

In  the  case  of  the  Dutch  colonists,  though  strenuous 
and  purposeful  in  establishing  the  Reformed  Church 
and  providing  for  its  support,  and  though  active  later 
on  in  promoting  missionary  effort,  yet  they  made  no 
explicit  public  declaration  of  a  missionary  aim  in  their 
initial  colonization  of  North  America.  The  "Walloon 
Synod,  however,  in  connection  with  the  Walloon  emi- 
gration, sent  over  ministers  chosen  with  a  view  to  their 
fitness  and  readiness  for  missionary  service. 

The  British  colonial  establishments  in  North  America 
now  claim  our  attention.  The  presence  of  the  mission- 
ary motive  in  these  venturesome  and  heroic  attempts  at 
colonization  cannot  be  questioned.  As  we  remarked 
before,  it  was  in  abeyance  for  a  time  after  the  advent 
of  the  Pilgrim  Fathers,  amid  the  difficulties  and  perils 
of  their  pioneer  experience  on  these  shores.  It  is  re- 
corded, however,  in  most  of  their  charters,  which  usually 
contain  a  strong  missionary  clause.  The  Puritan  writ- 
ings and  the  historical  literature  of  that  day  are  full  of 
it.  Their  noblest  men  were  Christian  pioneers  as  well 
as  statesmen.  Such  moving  spirits  on  the  other  side  as 
Sir  Humphrey  Gilbert  and  Hakluyt  agreed  that  "  the 
sowing  of  Christianity  must  be  the  chief  intent  of  such 
as  shall  make  any  attempt  at  foreign  discovery,  or  else 
whatever  is  builded  upon  other  foundation  shall  never 
obtain  happy  success  or  continuance."  In  Hakluyt's 
"  Discourse  Concerning  "Western  Planting,"  written  in 
1584,  a  document  of  prophetic  import  and  historic 
moment  in  the  development  of  American  colonization, 
appears  in  Chapter  XX,  a  summary  of  the  reasons  why 
Her  Majesty  should  favour  the  project.  Hakluyt  was 
a  Christian  man,  a  contemporary  of  Raleigh,  Sidney, 
Sir  Francis  Drake,  Shakespeare,  and  Queen  Elizabeth, 


The  Missionary  Factor  in  Colonial  History    57 

having  been  born  in  1553.  He  is  regarded  as  one  "  to 
whom  England  is  more  indebted  for  its  American 
possessions  than  to  any  other  man  of  that  age."  His 
"  reasons  "  given  as  inciting  English  enterprise  to  take 
swif t  possession  of  the  great  Western  prize  bristle,  to  be 
sure,  with  political,  commercial,  philanthropic,  and 
patriotic  arguments,  and  show  an  intense  spirit  of  rivalry 
with  Spain,  France,  and  Portugal,  as  representatives  of 
the  hated  papacy,  and  themselves  alert  searchers  for 
world-wide  dominion  ;  yet  even  in  this  strongly  nation- 
alistic document  occurs  the  following,  as  the  sixteenth 
"  reason  "  :  "  Wee  shall  by  plantinge  there  inlarge  the 
glory  of  the  gospell,  and  from  England  plante  sincere 
religion,  and  provide  a  safe  and  sure  place  to  receave 
people  from  all  partes  of  the  worlde  that  are  forced  to 
flee  for  the  truthe  of  God's  worde." 

Sir  Walter  Raleigh,  no  doubt  in  the  spirit  of  a  zealous 
churchman,  gave  one  hundred  pounds  to  the  Virginia 
Company  "  for  the  propagation  of  the  Christian  religion 
in  that  settlement."  This  was  probably  the  first  definite 
contribution  for  the  prosecution  of  evangelical  missions  in 
this  country.  In  the  very  first  charter  of  Virginia,  repre- 
senting an  adventurous  and  commercial  rather  than  a 
Puritan  impulse,  given  by  James  I,  in  April,  1606,  is  an 
explicit  statement  of  a  missionary  aim.  The  text  of  the 
paragraph  is  as  follows:  "WE,  greatly  commending,  and 
graciously  accepting  of,  their  Desires  for  the  Furtherance 
of  so  noble  a  Work,  which  may,  by  the  Providence  of 
Almighty  God,  hereafter  tend  to  the  Glory  of  His  Divine 
Majesty,  in  propagating  of  Christian  Religion  to  such 
People  as  yet  live  in  darkness  and  miserable  Ignorance 
of  the  true  Knowledge  and  Worship  of  God,  and  may  in 
time  bring  the  Infidels  and  Savages  living  in  those  Parts 


58  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

to  human  Civility,  and  to  a  settled  and  quiet  Govern- 
ment ;  DO,  by  these  our  Letters  Patents,  graciously 
accept  of,  and  agree  to,  their  humble  and  well-intended 
Desires."  A  paragraph  embodying  substantially  the 
same  purpose  and  desire  for  "  the  Conversion  and  Re- 
duction of  the  People  of  those  Parts  unto  the  true  Wor- 
ship of  God  and  Christian  Religion "  is  found  in  the 
second  charter,  issued  in  1609.  In  a  letter  to  Sir 
Walter  Raleigh,  referring  to  the  project  of  a  Virginia 
Colony,  Hakluyt  writes  expressing  his  pleasure  in 
Raleigh's  plans,  because  "you  meane  to  sende  some 
such  good  Churchman  thither  [to  Virginia]  as  may  truly 
say  with  the  Apostles  to  the  Sauvages,  wee  seeke  not 
yours  but  you."  Unfortunately,  as  time  passed,  the 
Virginia  Colony  became  to  a  perilous  extent  the  dump- 
ing-ground of  unworthy  adventurers  and  dangerous 
criminals,  yet  this  fact  should  not  obliterate  or  obscure 
the  purer  ideals  which  were  a  part  of  the  original 
project. 

Bradford  writes  of  the  motives  which  led  him  and 
his  fellow  Pilgrims  to  seek  these  distant  shores  as 
follows :  "  Lastly  (and  which  was  not  least)  a  great 
hope  and  inward  zeal  they  had  of  laying  some  good 
foundation,  or  at  least  to  make  some  way  thereunto, 
for  ye  propagating  and  advancing  ye  Gospel  of  ye 
kingdom  of  Christ  in  those  remote  parts  of  ye  world : 
yea,  though  they  should  be  but  even  as  stepping-stones 
unto  others  for  ye  performing  of  so  great  a  work."  In 
the  light  of  this  declaration  we  may  safely  read  the 
missionary  motive  into  the  Mayflower  Compact,  es- 
pecially that  clause  in  which  the  whole  undertaking  is 
declared  to  be  "  for  ye  glorie  of  God,  and  advance, 
mente  of  ye  Christian  faith."     In  Cushman's  "  Reasons 


The  Missionary  Factor  in  Colonial  History     59 

and  Considerations  touching  the  lawfulness  of  removing 
out  of  England  into  the  parts  of  America,"  published 
in  England  in  1622,  after  his  return  from  a  visit  to  the 
Plymouth  Colony,  the  missionary  aim  and  incentive 
are  set  forth  at  length.  In  the  address,  "To  the 
Reader,"  written  by  G.  Mourt  (or  George  Morton), 
which  introduces  the  "  Journal  of  the  Pilgrims,"  pub- 
lished in  London  in  1622,  it  is  stated  that  "  the  desire 
of  carrying  the  Gospell  of  Christ  into  those  forraigne 
parts,  amongst  those  people  that  as  yet  have  had  no 
knowledge  nor  tast  of  God,  as  also  to  procure  unto 
themselves  and  others  a  quiet  and  comfortable  habyta- 
tion ;  weare  amongst  other  things  the  inducements 
unto  these  undertakers  of  the  then  hopefull,  and  now 
experimentally  knowne  good  enterprice  for  plantation 
in  Xew  England."  * 

A  side  light  on  the  spirit  and  motive  of  the  Pilgrim 
Fathers  is  found  in  the  Petition  of  the  Directors  of  the 
New  Netherland  Company  to  the  Prince  of  Orange, 
February  12,  1620,  stating  that  "there  is  residing  at 
Leyden  a  certain  English  Preacher,  versed  in  the  Dutch 
language,  who  is  well  inclined  to  proceed  thither  to 
live,  assuring  the  petitioners  that  he  has  the  means  of 
inducing  over  four  hundred  families  to  accompany  him 
thither,  both  out  of  this  country  and  England."  The 
petition  seeks  the  protection  of  the  Prince  and  the 
States-General  of  the  Netherlands  to  be  extended  to 
these  voyagers  in  v  hat  is  declared  to  be  their  purpose 

144  The  Journal  of  the  Pilgrims,  Reprinted  from  the  Original 
Volume  with  Historical  and  Local  Illustrations  of  Providences,  Prin- 
ciples, and  Persons,"  by  George  B.  Cheever,  D.  D.,  p.  13.  Cushman's 
statement  of  "Reasons  "  above  referred  to  is  found  in  the  same  volume, 
pp.  99-108. 


60  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

in  going  to  New  Netherland,  namely,  "the  propaga- 
tion of  the  true,  pure  Christian  religion,  in  the  instruc- 
tion of  the  Indians  of  that  country  in  true  learning, 
and  in  converting  them  to  the  Christian  faith,  and 
thus,  through  the  mercy  of  the  Lord,  to  the  greater 
glory  of  this  country's  government,  to  plant  there  a 
new  Commonwealth."  A  request  is  presented  in  con- 
clusion for  two  Dutch  ships  of  war  to  protect  the 
Pilgrims  in  this  venture.  The  request  was  subse- 
quently refused,  and  the  Pilgrims  turned  elsewhere  for 
help.1 

Winthrop,  of  the  Massachusetts  Colony,  confessed  to 
the  same  motive,  and  in  his  journal  are  numerous 
statements  of  his  desire  for  the  conversion  of  the 
aborigines.  A  single  paragraph,  inserted  toward  the 
close  of  his  life,  may  be  quoted  :  "  We  now  began  to 
conceive  that  the  Lord's  time  was  at  hand  for  opening 
a  door  of  light  and  grace  to  those  Indians,  and  some 
fruit  appeared  of  our  kind  dealing  with  them,  and  pro- 
tecting them,  and  righting  them."  One  of  the  reasons 
given  in  the  "  Life  of  Winthrop  "  for  establishing  the 
intended  plantation  in  New  England  is  carrying  "  the 
Gospell  into  those  parts  of  the  world,  to  helpe  on  the 
comminge  of  the  fullness  of  the  Gentiles." 

In  the  charter  of  the  Massachusetts  Colony,  given  by 
Charles  I,  in  1629,  to  John  Endicott  and  his  associates, 
occurs  the  following  clause  in  explanation  of  one  of  the 
chief  ends  of  the  colony.  This  is  stated  to  be  "  for  the 
directing,  ruling,  and  disposeing  of  all  other  matters 
and  things  whereby  our  said  people,  inhabitants  there, 

1  "  Documents  Relating  to  the  Colonial  History  of  the  State  of  New 
York,"  Vol.  I,  pp.  22,  23. 


The  Missionary  Factor  in  Colonial  History    61 

male  be  soe  religiously,  peaceablie,  and  civilly  governed, 
as  their  good  life  and  orderlie  conversation  maie  wynn 
and  incite  the  natives  of  [that]  country  to  the  knowl- 
edge and  obedience  of  the  onlie  true  God  and  Saviour 
of  mankinde,  and  the  Christian  fayth,  which,  in  our 
royall  intention  and  the  adventurers'  free  profession,  is 
the  principall  ende  of  this  plantation."  The  original 
seal  of  the  Massachusetts  Colony  contained  the  figure 
of  an  Indian,  with  the  legend,  "  Come  over  and  help 
us,"  inscribed  upon  it.  In  the  "  General  History  of 
New  England,"  published  in  the  "  Collections  of  the 
Massachusetts  Historical  Society,"  Second  Series,  on 
page  649  of  Yol.  YI,  begins  Chapter  lxxvi,  on  "  The 
Success  and  Progress  of  the  Gospel  amongst  the  Indians 
of  New  England."  The  opening  paragraph  of  the 
chapter  is  as  follows :  "  Forasmuch  as  the  conversion 
of  the  Indians  in  America  was  none  of  the  least  motives 
that  persuaded  many  of  the  inhabitants  of  New  England 
to  transport  themselves  thither,  it  will  be  expected  that 
in  this  place  some  account  should  be  given  of  the  effect 
thereof."  A  further  statement  concerning  the  exist- 
ence of  this  missionary  motive  is  found  in  Scottow's 
"  Narrative  of  the  Planting  of  Massachusetts,"  published 
in  Boston  in  1694. ' 

1  The  statement  is  quaintly  worded,  as  follows  :  "  Neither  Gold  or 
Silver,  nor  French  or  Dutch  Trade  of  Peltry,  did  Oil  their  Wheels  ;  it 
was  the  Propagation  of  Piety  and  Religion  to  Posterity  ;  and  the  secret 
Macedonian  Call,  Come  over  and  HELPU9 — the  setting  upof  Christ's 
Kingdom  among  the  Heathens.  .  .  .  Infinite  Wisdom  and  Pru- 
dence contrived  and  direoted  this  Mysterious  Work  of  Providence  ; 
Divine  Courage  and  Resolution  managed  it  ;  Superhumane  Sedulity 
and  Diligence  attended  it,  and  Angelical  Swiftness  and  Dispatch 
finished  it.  Its  Wheels  stirred  not  but  according  to  the  Holy 
Spirit's  motion  in  them." 


62  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

In  the  articles  of  the  New  England  Confederation, 
drawn  up  in  1643,  the  opening  sentence  is  as  follows: 
"  Whereas  we  all  came  into  these  parts  of  America 
with  one  and  the  same  end  and  ayme,  namely,  to  ad- 
vance the  Kingdome  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  and  to 
enjoy  the  liberties  of  the  Gospel."  Here  it  may  be 
noted  is  an  acknowledgment  which  is  united,  deliberate, 
and  official.  In  1644,  the  year  following  the  forma- 
tion of  the  Confederation,  the  General  Court  of  Massa- 
chusetts passed  an  order  directing  the  County  Courts 
to  adopt  measures  providing  for  the  instruction  of  the 
Indians !  "  in  the  knowledge  and  worship  of  God." 
Prominent  among  those  who  were  subsequently  en- 
gaged in  carrying  out  the  spirit  of  this  legislation  were 
Eliot  and  the  Mayhews.2 

Roger  "Williams,  while  a  stalwart  friend  of  political 
and  religious  liberty,  was  also  a  zealous  advocate  and  par- 
ticipant in  missionary  work  for  the  Indians.  The  Royal 
Charter  of  Rhode  Island,  given  in  1663  by  Charles  II 
to  a  band  of  colonists,  among  whom  was  Roger  Will- 
iams, contains  the  following  statement  of  one  of  the 
leading  motives  which  influenced  them  in  seeking  the 
charter.     It  is  stated  to  be  "  that  they,  pursueing,  with 

1The  following  were  the  titles  of  some  of  the  Puritan  tracts  on  this 
subject : 

"  The  Day  breaking,  if  not  the  Sun  rising,  of  the  Gospel  with  the 
Indians  in  New  England,"  by  Winslow,  1647. 

"  The  Clear  Sunshine  of  the  Gospel  breaking  forth  upon  the  In- 
dians," by  Thomas  Shepard,  1648. 

"  The  Glorious  Progress  of  the  Gospel  amongst  the  Indians  in  New 
England,"  1649. 

For  other  titles,  see  Winsor's  "Narrative  and  Critical  History  of 
America,"  Vol.  Ill,  p.  355. 

*  Palfrey's  "  History  of  New  England,"  Vol.  I,  p.  334. 


The  Missionary  Factor  in  Colonial  History    63 

peaceable  and  loyall  mindes,  their  sober,  serious,  and 
religious  intentions,  of  godlie  edifieing  themselves,  and 
one  another,  in  the  holie  Christian  ffaith  and  worshipp 
as  they  were  perswaded,  together  with  the  gaineing 
over  and  conversione  of  the  poore  ignorant  Indian  na- 
tives, in  those  partes  of  America,  to  the  sincere  pro- 
fessione  and  obedienc  of  the  ffaith  and  worshipp." 
Williams  gave  much  attention  to  the  study  of  the 
Indian  language,  and  devoted  himself  personally  to 
mission  work  among  them. 

The  Swedish  settlement  on  the  Delaware,  in  1638, 
was  soon  provided  with  a  missionary  to  the  Indians, 
who  began  a  work  which  was  continued  by  Swedish 
pastors  through  the  entire  colonial  period.  The  Rev. 
John  Campanius  arrived  from  Sweden  in  1643,  with 
the  newly-appointed  Governor  Printz.  It  is  noticeable 
that  in  the  latter's  official  instructions  for  the  govern- 
ment of  New  Sweden  he  is  required  to  treat  the  sav- 
ages "  with  humanity  and  mildness,"  and  informed 
that  he  "must  labour  to  instruct  them  in  the  Chris- 
tian religion  and  the  divine  service,  and  civilize 
them."  l 

In  the  charter  which  Charles  II  gave  to  William 
Penn  in  1681,  among  the  motives  which  are  credited 
to  Penn  in  seeking  the  charter,  is  the  following :  "  To 
reduce  the  Savage  Natives  by  gentle  and  just  manners 
to  the  love  of  civil  Societie  and  Christian  Religion." 
The  noble  way  in  which  Penn  and  his  followers  ex- 
emplified this  spirit  forms  a  beautiful  chapter  in  our 
early  history.  Pemi  was  himself  a  missionary  evan- 
gelist in  Holland  and  Germany  before  he  came  over 
to  America.     In  the  petition  which  he  presented  to 

1  Hazard's  "  Annals  of  Pennsylvania,"  p.  66. 


64  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

Charles  II  for  the  payment  of  a  debt  of  £16,000  due 
to  his  father,  Admiral  Penn,  by  a  grant  of  land  in 
America,  he  stated  that  "  he  had  in  view  the  glory  of 
God  by  the  civilization  of  the  poor  Indians,  and  the 
conversion  of  the  Gentiles,  by  just  and  lenient  meas- 
ures, to  Christ's  kingdom."  The  Friends  were  so  in- 
spired with  kindly  devotion  to  the  welfare  of  the  Indi- 
ans, and  respect  for  their  rights,  and  so  won  their 
attachment,  that  no  Quaker  was  ever  massacred  by  an 
Indian  during  the  history  of  the  Pennsylvania  Colony, 
although  neighbouring  colonies  suffered  severely.  The 
Maryland  Charter,  given  by  Charles  I  to  the  second 
Lord  Baltimore,  in  1632,  in  its  opening  paragraph  re- 
fers to  him  as  "  animated  with  a  laudable  and  pious 
zeal  for  extending  the  Christian  Religion." 

In  the  first  charter  of  Carolina,  given  in  1663  by 
Charles  II,  it  is  stated  in  the  first  paragraph  that 
"whereas  our  right  trusty,  and  right  well  beloved 
Cousins  and  Counsellors,"  here  naming  the  applicants, 
it  continues  as  follows :  "  being  excited  with  a  laudable 
and  pious  zeal  for  the  Propagation  of  the  Christian 
Faith,  and  the  Enlargement  of  our  Empire  and  Do- 
minions, have  humbly  besought  leave  of  us,"  and  so  on 
to  the  end.  This  "  pious  and  noble  purpose  "  is  subse- 
quently referred  to  in  the  document,  and  provision  is 
made  for  ecclesiastical  expansion  with  special  and 
generous  concessions  in  favour  of  church  dissent  and 
liberty  of  conscience.  The  charter  of  Georgia,  given 
in  1732,  was  based  almost  wholly  upon  the  philan- 
thropic and  missionary  plans  of  Oglethorpe  to  give  the 
opportunity  for  "  a  new  start  in  life  "  to  those  who 
had  been  unfortunate  and  unsuccessful  in  England. 
In  cooperation  with  Oglethorpe  were  Moravian  mis- 


The  Missionary  Factor  in  Colonial  History    65 

sionaries  who  came  over  especially  to  evangelize  the 
Indians.  Their  work  was  interrupted,  however,  after 
three  years,  by  a  call  to  bear  arms,  which  they  had 
stipulated  should  never  be  required  of  them,  and  to 
which  they  refused  to  respond.  They  then  removed  to 
Pennsylvania.  In  1735,  the  Wesleys  came  to  Georgia 
expressly  on  a  missionary  errand.  It  was  not  their 
fault  that  they  were  not  able  to  accomplish  their  pur- 
pose to  work  among  the  Indians. 

Thus  the  early  colonial  ventures  forming  the  basis 
of  our  history  seem  to  have  been  consciously  and 
devoutly  identified  with  a  missionary  purpose.  The 
colonial  official  seemed  in  many  prominent  instances 
to  be  a  twin  brother  of  the  Christian  missionary,  and 
they  appeared  much  of  the  time  to  walk  arm  in  arm 
in  a  happy  alliance  of  mutual  respect  and  sympathy 
during  the  prenational  period  of  American  history.  In 
the  light  of  the  evidence  we  have  reviewed,  that  un- 
guarded saying  that  the  original  settlers,  when  they 
landed  on  these  shores,  "first  fell  upon  their  knees, 
and  then  arose  and  fell  upon  the  aborigines,"  is  cer- 
tainly not  justified,  so  far  as  our  Pilgrim  Fathers  are 
concerned,  either  by  the  historic  atmosphere  of  the 
times,  or  the  actual  succession  of  events.  Wars  oc- 
curred, it  is  true,  in  the  course  of  time,  but  either  as 
the  result  of  Indian  treachery,  or  as  the  inevitable  out- 
come of  that  clashing  of  national  interests  which  arose 
as  the  growing  colonies  became  more  and  more  ag- 
gressive. It  is  not  to  be  lost  sight  of,  moreover,  that 
political  jealousy  among  colonists,  especially  the  French 
and  English,  is  responsible  for  many  entanglements 
with  the  Indians. 

John  Eliot  arrived  in  the  Massachusetts  Colony  in 


66  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

1631,  and  soon  after  began  his  memorable  missionary 
service,  during  which  he  translated  the  Bible  into  the 
Indian  language,  formed  numerous  villages  of  praying 
Indians,  and  toiled  devotedly  among  them.  The  May- 
hews  in  succession  were  earnest  labourers  for  the 
spiritual  good  of  the  Indians,  and  in  their  island  posses- 
sions, especially  Martha's  Vineyard,  they  conducted 
missions  among  them  with  conspicuous  success  for  five 
generations  continuously,  or  for  a  period  of  160  years 
(1646-1806).  The  affectionate  regard  of  the  Indians 
was  held  during  all  this  time,  and  the  colonists  on 
Martha's  Vineyard  were  unmolested,  even  when  violence 
and  massacre  were  raging  on  the  mainland.  In  the 
year  1700  it  is  estimated  that  there  were  several  thou- 
sand Christian  Indians  in  New  England.  A  long  line 
of  devoted  men,  among  whom  we  find  such  names  as 
Rowland  Cotton,  John  Cotton,  Bourne,  Treat,  Sergeant, 
Edwards,  Horton,  and  Brainerd,  including  the  Mora- 
vians, with  laymen  like  Tupper  and  Josiah  Cotton,  brings 
us  well  on  toward  the  end  of  the  eighteenth  century. 
Diligent  and  successful  work  among  the  Indians  in 
New  England  characterized  that  century  to  an  extent 
much  greater  than  is  realized  at  the  present  time.1 
The  shameful  banishment  of  the  Moravians,  in  1744, 
from  their  successful  missionary  labours  in  New  York, 
which  obliged  them  to  take  asylum  in  Pennsylvania, 
and  was  instigated  partly  by  the  enmity  of  vicious 
colonists,  and  partly  by  the  intolerant  spirit  of  the 
Established  Church,  and  accomplished  by  the  unworthy 
cooperation  of  Governor  Clinton,  must,  however,  be  re- 
garded as  a  stain  upon  the  colonial  history  of  New  York. 

1  Thompson,  ' '  Protestant  Missions  :  Their  Rise  and  Early  Progress, " 
pp.  82-147. 


The  Missionary  Factor  in  Colonial  History    67 

The  proceeding  was  rebuked  and  reversed  live  years 
later  by  Act  of  Parliament. 

John  Eliot,  the  missionary,  dedicated  one  of  his  books 
to  Oliver  Cromwell,  and  for  this  reason,  that,  "  in  1649, 
in  Cromwell's  Parliament  there  was  passed  a  Bill  for 
the  establishment  of  a  Corporation  for  the  Propagation 
of  the  Gospel  in  New  England,  and  all  the  congregations 
throughout  the  country  were  advised  to  take  up  collec- 
tions for  the  purpose."  The  scheme  was  proposed  in  a 
petition  to  Parliament  by  a  number  of  English  and 
Scotch  pastors.  Cromwell  himself  at  that  time  sug- 
gested a  more  elaborate  plan,  based  upon  the  establish- 
ment of  a  Congregatio  de  Propaganda  Fide^  with 
officers  and  directors,  the  object  of  which  was  to  be  the 
dissemination  of  the  Christian  religion  throughout  the 
world.  This,  however,  failed  of  realization.  Mr. 
Edward  Winslow  of  the  Plymouth  Colony,  then  on  a 
visit  to  England,  was  also  one  of  the  inspirers  of  the 
Parliamentary  movement  just  mentioned,  to  found  this 
early  effort  at  organized  missions  in  New  England. 
The  Corporation  was  active  and  useful  for  a  number  of 
years  ;  its  charter  was  renewed  in  1662,  and  still  exists, 
under  the  name  of  the  "  New  England  Company." 

The  Society  for  Promoting  Christian  Knowledge, 
founded  in  England  in  1698,  gave  prompt  attention  to  a 
project  for  the  advancement  of  religion  in  the  Planta- 
tions. At  the  suggestion  of  Dr.  Bray,  one  of  its 
founders,  and  a  man  of  indefatigable  zeal  in  the  pro- 
motion of  its  object,  provision  was  made  for  a  supply  of 
good  literature  to  the  clergy  and  laity,  and  large  plans 
were  made  for  educational  and  missionary  work  in  the 
American  Plantations.  These  plans  were  not  carried 
out  to  any  extent  by  the  Society  for  Promoting  Chris- 


68  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

tian  Knowledge,  owing  to  the  almost  immediate  forma- 
tion of  the  Society  for  the  Propagation  of  the  Gospel 
in  Foreign  Parts,  and  the  committal  of  the  colonial 
missionary  work  to  the  latter's  special  care.  The 
Society  known  as  Dr.  Bray's  Associates  was  a  distinct 
organization,  founded  in  1733,  for  the  establishment  of 
libraries  for  the  clergy  at  home  and  abroad,  and  for  the 
support  of  schools  for  negroes.  These  have  been  con- 
ducted chiefly  in  the  "West  Indies  during  the  nineteenth 
century. 

The  Society  for  the  Propagation  of  the  Gospel  in 
Foreign  Parts  was  established  in  1701,  and  in  Scot- 
land, distinct  from  the  English  society  of  the  same 
name,  was  formed  a  Society  for  Promoting  Chris- 
tian Knowledge,  in  1709.  The  latter  worked  through 
a  "  Board  of  Correspondents  "  in  Boston  and  New  York, 
and  supported  several  missionaries  to  the  Indians, 
among  whom  was  Brainerd.  King's  College  (now 
Columbia  University)  is  in  large  part  identified  with 
the  missionary  efforts  of  the  Society  for  the  Propaga- 
tion of  the  Gospel,  founded  in  1701  ;  for,  although  the 
movement  for  the  establishment  of  the  College  origi- 
nated here  among  the  colonists,  in  1746,  funds  for  the 
purpose  being  secured,  strange  to  say,  by  an  officially 
authorized  lottery,  and  five  hundred  pounds  per  annum 
for  seven  years  were  voted  out  of  the  excise  revenues 
of  the  Province  of  New  York  for  its  support ;  yet  it  was 
soon  taken  under  the  patronage  of  the  English  Propa- 
gation Society,  through  whose  good  offices  its  charter 
was  obtained,  in  1754,  and  who  aided  it  financially  for 
a  considerable  period.1     An  explicit  announcement  is 

1  "  Documents  Relating  to  the  Colonial  History  of  the  State  of  New 
York,"  Vol.  VI,  p.  625. 


The  Missionary  Factor  in  Colonial  History    69 

made  of  a  missionary  purpose  in  the  establishment  of 
King's  College ;  it  was  to  "  assist  in  raising  up  a  succes- 
sion of  faithful  Instructors  to  be  sent  forth  among  our 
own  people  and  the  Indians  in  alliance  with  us,  in  order 
to  teach  them  the  ways  of  truth." '  Its  name  was 
changed  soon  after  the  Revolutionary  War  from  King's 
to  Columbia  College. 

Under  this  same  Society  for  the  Propagation  of  the 
Gospel  in  Foreign  Parts,  dating  from  1701,  much 
valuable  missionary  work  was  done  throughout  the 
colonies  and  in  Canada  during  the  eighteenth  century, 
or  until  the  War  of  the  Revolution  opened.  The  total 
of  missionaries  employed  previous  to  1785  is  stated  in 
the  Digest  of  the  Society's  Records  (p.  86)  to  be  309. 
It  was  instrumental,  also,  in  establishing  Codrington 
College,  in  Barbados,  based  upon  a  legacy  of  General 
Codrington,  left  in  1703  to  be  administrated  by  this 
Society.  The  virtual  parentage  of  the  American 
Episcopal  Church,  and,  indirectly,  of  its  inestimable 
services  to  our  country,  has  also  ever  since  been  regarded 
as  the  historic  outcome  of  the  labours  of  this  venerable 
missionary  organization  during  our  colonial  era.  Dart- 
mouth College  was  founded  by  Eleazar  Wheelock,  the 
founder  also  of  "Moor's  Indian  Charity  School,"  at 
Lebanon,  Connecticut.  The  two  institutions  at  that 
time  were  not,  however,  identical,  although  both 
were  eventually  located  at  Hanover,  New  Hampshire. 
Dartmouth  College  is,  therefore,  the  outgrowth  of 
the  Indian  Charity  School,  and  was  established  by 
Wheelock  with  money  collected  in  England  for  sub- 
stantially the  same  purpose,  the  training  of  missionaries 

1 "  Documents  Relating  to  the  Colonial  History  of  the  State  of  New 
York,"  Vol.  VII,  p.  644. 


70  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

from  not  only  the  Indians,  but  also  from  the  colonists. 
It  was  founded  about  the  same  time  as  King's  College, 
and  named  after  Lord  Dartmouth,  the  President  of  the 
Board  of  Trustees. 

Other  educational  institutions,  many  of  them  in  the 
front  rank,  are  indebted  for  their  existence,  in  part  at 
least,  to  a  distinctly  missionary  purpose.  The  founda- 
tions of  Harvard  College,  in  1636,  were  deeply  laid  in 
religion  and  morality,  and  its  original  purpose  con- 
templated the  education  of  the  Indians  as  well  as  the 
colonists,  as  is  manifest  in  that  valuable  little  pamphlet 
entitled,  "  New  England's  First-Fruits  in  Respect  to  the 
Progress  of  Learning  in  the  College  at  Cambridge  in 
Massachusetts  Bay,"  which  dates  from  1642,  and  was 
published  in  London  in  1643.  Princeton  and  Yale 
were  also  founded  with  a  view  to  religious  as  well  as 
academic  training,  and  for  the  propagation  of  Chris- 
tianity as  well  as  of  sound  learning.  Hamilton  College 
was  founded  by  the  Rev.  Samuel  Kirkland,  a  mission- 
ary to  the  Mohawk  and  Oneida  Indians,  educated  at 
Wheelock's  Indian  School.  He  was  ordained  to  the 
service  in  1766,  and  laboured  among  the  Oneidas  for 
forty  years.  In  1792  he  gave  an  endowment  of  land 
to  found  an  academy,  which  was  afterward  incor- 
porated as  Hamilton  College.1 

This  summary  review  indicates  with  sufficient  clear- 
ness that  when  the  hour  of  the  Revolution  sounded 
there  was  lying  at  the  very  basis  of  our  existence  as  a 
nation  a  valuable  contribution  of  missionary  service, 
forming  a  determining  feature  in  the  moral  and  polit- 
ical assets  of  our  colonial  history.     Missionary  devotion 

1  "  Documents  Relating  to  tbe  Colonial  History  of  the  State  of  New 
York,"  Vol.  VIII,  p.  613. 


The  Missionary  Factor  in  Colonial  History    71 

and  foresight  founded  our  earliest  educational  institu- 
tions, shaped  in  part  our  initial  policy  toward  the 
aborigines,  fixed  in  certain  respects  the  principles  of 
local  administration,  nourished  the  growth  of  political 
and  religious  liberty,  and  added  elements  of  romantic 
and  sympathetic  interest  to  the  friendly  regard  with 
which  Christians  in  the  Old  World  watched  our  prog- 
ress, and  contributed  toward  our  moral  and  intellectual 
advancement.  There  are  certain  periods  in  the  history 
of  human  progress  when  it  seems  impossible  to  draw 
any  clear  line  of  differentiation  between  the  missionary 
spirit,  so-called,  and  the  general  purpose  to  uplift  man- 
kind religiously,  morally,  and  intellectually.  The  era 
of  colonial  beginnings  in  religious  and  educational  ex- 
pansion seems  to  be  such  a  time.  The  missionary  cur- 
rent is  clearly  discernible,  but  it  appears,  as  it  were,  to 
flow  into  the  broader  ocean  of  history,  like  a  genial 
Gulf  Stream  of  influence,  commingling  with  the  vaster 
waters,  yet  hardly  at  times  distinguishable  from  them. 
Soon  after  the  Revolution  the  home  missionary 
movement  began,  which  has  been  such  a  blessing  to  our 
country.  It  may  be  regarded  as  the  lineal  descendant 
of  its  colonial  progenitor,  and  the  deep  indebtedness  of 
our  country  to  its  unfaltering  zeal  and  its  untiring 
labours  is  now  a  part  of  our  religious  history.  The 
names  of  its  promoters  and  servants,  especially  such 
men  as  Manasseh  Cutler,  who  is  forever  identified  with 
the  history  of  the  great  Northwest  Territory,  and  also 
Marcus  Whitman,  whose  later  services  in  the  far  North- 
west were  of  such  conspicuous  value,  are,  with  many 
others,  high  on  the  roll  of  public  benefactors.  This  is 
true  of  Whitman,  even  though  all  that  has  been  claimed 
for  him  should  not  prove  to  be  historically  correct. 


72  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

Both  he  and  Cutler  were  men  of  might  in  our  political 
as  well  as  our  religious  history. 

Manasseh  Cutler  was  the  able  and  indefatigable  agent 
of  the  Ohio  Company,  to  whose  personal  influence  and 
advocacy  more  than  of  any  other  one  man  was  due  the 
insertion  in  the  famous  Ordinance  of  1787  of  those  noble 
clauses  concerning  religion,  education,  and  the  prohi- 
bition of  slavery,  afterward  incorporated  in  the  consti- 
tution of  the  state  of  Ohio.  He  may  not  have  been 
personally  the  originator,  but  he  was  the  ardent  sup- 
porter in  that  hour  of  its  official  adoption  of  the  provi- 
sion for  the  realization  of  statehood  which  settled  in 
that  formative  period  of  our  history  the  political 
destiny  of  the  territorial  organization  in  our  form  of 
government.  Cutler  is  thus  a  shining  example  of  the 
way  in  which  Providence  often  uses  the  man  of  God, 
who,  in  many  almost  unnoted  instances,  is  also  the  mis- 
sionary, as  the  servant  of  the  State,  for  the  establish- 
ment of  political  and  social  principles  of  far-reaching 
import.'  Among  missionaries  identified  with  the  early 
history  of  our  country  who  have  received  votes  for  a 
place  in  the  "  Hall  of  Fame,"  not  sufficient,  however,  to 
secure  an  election,  are  Whitman,  Brainerd,  Titus  Coan, 
Manasseh  Cutler,  and  Samuel  Kirkland.  An  Ameri- 
can, of  all  men,  who  depreciates  the  value  of  either 
foreign  or  home  missions  comes  very  near  despising 
one  of  the  original  sponsors  of  his  national  birthright. 

In  the  preceding  essay  on  Missions  and  Diplomacy 
we  have  had  occasion  to  refer  to  the  important  part 
played  by  missions  in  the  early  colonial  expansion  of 
the  Dutch  and  of  the  British  Empire  during  the  latter 

1  "  Life,  Journal,  and  Correspondence  of  Reverend  Manasseh  Cutler, 
LL.  D.,"  Vol.  I,  pp.  335-371. 


The  Missionary  Factor  in  Colonial  History    73 

part  of  the  eighteenth  and  the  whole  of  the  nineteenth 
century.  In  recent  history  of  the  Philippines  the 
political  ascendency  came  first,  with  startling  sudden- 
ness, and  now  the  missionary  duty  is  pressing  hard, 
and  the  Christian  conscience  of  the  nation  responds. 
This  same  order  of  events  has  been  noticeable  in  other 
instances,  as  in  the  case  of  the  East  India  Company  of 
Queen  Elizabeth,  and  other  chartered  companies  of  the 
British  Empire.  It  is  hardly  possible  now,  either  in 
the  case  of  Great  Britain  or  the  United  States,  that  ex- 
pansion should  be  unattended  by  missionary  effort,  and 
it  would  be  in  the  long  run  a  calamity  if  colonial  his- 
tory should  be  void  of  missionary  purpose.  In  fact, 
we  made  the  closest  possible  approach  to  a  missionary 
programme  which  is  proper  on  the  part  of  a  great  nation, 
when  we  undertook  that  campaign  of  intervention  and 
rescue  on  behalf  of  Cuba,  suggested  largely  by  humane 
motives,  and  based  upon  neighbourly  community  of  in- 
terest, which  resulted,  for  the  time  being  at  least,  in 
our  responsible  control  of  the  Philippines.  The  twen- 
tieth century  will  no  doubt  unfold  in  this  connection 
results  which  will  be  an  honour  to  missions,  and,  let  us 
hope,  a  credit  to  our  national  history. 


Ill 

Missions  and  National  Evolution 


It  is  a  fact  against  which  we  cannot  argue  that  Christian  missions  en- 
tered Japan  in  1859,  and  planted  there  the  institutions  of  Christianity.  In 
1872,  the  new  era  was  inaugurated,  and  within  fifty  years  from  the  opening 
of  the  country  Japan  took  her  place  upon  an  equal  footing  among  the 
nations  of  the  West.  Missionaries  entered  China  in  1807,  but  it  was  not 
until  i860  that  any  degree  of  freedom  was  allowed  them,  and  not  until 
1 90 1  that  open  and  persistent  opposition  upon  the  part  of  the  national 
leaders  was  overcome.  In  1912,  China  proclaimed  a  constitution  upon  a 
modern  basis.  Missionaries  began  in  the  Turkish  Empire  in  18 19,  and 
in  the  face  of  a  system  of  opposition  and  persecution  experienced  in  no 
other  country,  Christian  institutions  were  established  in  all  parts  of  the 
empire.  In  1908,  a  constitution  was  proclaimed  with  general  education. 
This  is  practically  also  the  story  of  Persia,  Korea,  Burma,  and  the  Islands 
of  the  Pacific,  and  of  the  entire  Eastern  world  where  Christian  mission- 
aries have  entered,  and  established  their  institutions  of  the  Gospel. 
Beneficent  national  changes  have  inevitably  followed  the  planting  of 
Christian  institutions,  through  which  the  conditions  of  the  people  have 
been  improved,  society  elevated,  a  better  order  maintained,  and  a  new 
national  life  inaugurated. 

It  is  interesting  to  compare  the  progress  made  in  any  one  of  these 
countries  named  with  that  made  in  countries  like  Tibet  or  Bokhara  or 
Afghanistan,  from  which  the  modern  missionary  movement  has  been 
barred.     .     .     . 

It  is  not  to  be  understood  that  credit  is  claimed  by  missionaries  for  all 
recent  progress  made  in  Eastern  countries.  Many  Christianizing  and 
civilizing  forces  other  than  missionary  have  been  in  operation  during  the 
last  half  century,  influencing  mightily  the  intellectual,  moral,  and  national 
life  of  Asia.  .  .  .  We  must,  however,  give  missions  first  place  in  the 
organization  and  execution  of  the  plan  to  establish  Christianity  in  the 
minds,  hearts,  and  lives  of  Asiatics,  and  through  the  seed  thus  planted  to 
produce  a  New  East. 

James  L.  Barton,  D.  D. 


Ill 

MISSIONS  AND  NATIONAL  EVOLUTION1 

WE  can  readily  believe  that  God  maintains  a 
sovereign  control  over  the  historical  de- 
velopment of  nations  in  modern  as  well  as 
in  ancient  times.  He  is  as  truly  the  God  of  Nations 
now  as  He  was  then.  Indeed,  because  of  the  rapidity 
of  national  growth  and  the  complexity  of  national  life 
in  our  modern  era,  the  exercise  of  His  mighty  power 
may  be  more  intensely  active  in  the  present  time  than 
in  the  past  ages.  The  Hebrew  historians  described 
with  realistic  diction  the  sovereign  workings  of  God 
among  the  nations,  and  in  forms  of  speech  which  made 
clear  their  vivid  recognition  of  the  direct  agency  of  an 
overruling  Providence.  The  modern  historian,  how- 
ever devout  his  mood,  may  not,  perhaps,  use  Biblical 
formulae,  being  influenced  by  the  dominant  idea  of 
theistic  evolution  now  so  regnant  in  the  philosophy 
and  science  of  our  times ;  but  this  does  not  necessarily 
indicate  any  deliberate  intention  on  his  part  to  ignore 
or  to  banish  the  idea  of  God's  sovereignty,  and  His 
supreme  guidance  of  the  contemporary  life  of  nations. 
He  simply  brings  his  trend  of  thought,  together  with 
his  literary  style  and  terminology,  into  conformity 
with  prevalent  philosophical  theories  of  the  mode  and 
order  of  divine  activities  as  related  to  historical  prog- 
ress.    A  new  view  of  the  divine  methods  of  working 

1  The  Churchman,  September  23,  1905. 

77 


78  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

requires  new  forms  of  expression,  which,  while  giving 
prominence  to  secondary  causes  and  evolutionary  proc- 
esses, do  not  rule  out  the  First  Cause,  or  make  the 
existence  of  a  supreme  intelligence  any  less  essential  in 
a  true  philosophy  of  history. 

Christian  missions,  in  their  broad  and  multiform  re- 
sults, doubtless  have  a  part  to  play  in  the  history  of 
our  times  corresponding  closely  to  that  training  of  Old 
Testament  ritual  and  discipline  which  can  be  so  plainly 
traced  in  the  calling  and  governance  of  the  Jewish 
nation.  History  is,  in  fact,  repeating  itself.  The  Old 
Testament  dispensation  as  a  school  of  national  life 
finds,  in  a  measure,  its  counterpart  in  the  activities  of 
modern  missions  among  existing  nations.  Our  own 
Christendom  is  in  a  large  sense  mission  fruitage,  and 
now  Christianity,  true  to  its  Founder's  purpose,  is  be- 
coming the  teacher  and  guide  of  all  nations,  in  very 
much  the  same  sense  that  the  ancient  dispensation  was 
the  schoolmaster  for  the  training  of  a  single  elect 
nation  for  its  place  in  history. 

The  Bible  is  full  of  the  national  life  not  only  of  the 
Hebrews,  but  of  contemporary  peoples;  and  if  a 
modern  Bible  of  mission  history  could  be  written  by 
inspired  discernment,  we  should  surely  discover  the 
same  almighty  sovereign  purpose  working  for  the  ac- 
complishment of  its  high  designs  in  the  training  and 
destiny  of  modern  nations.  The  ultimate,  although 
not  the  primary,  object  of  missions  is  to  prepare  men 
and  women  to  be  better  members  of  human  society, 
and  more  helpful  participants  in  the  social  and  national 
development  of  the  generation  to  which  they  belong — 
it  being  understood  that  the  most  effective  method  of 
accomplishing  this  is  to  bring  them  as  individuals  into 


Missions  and  National  Evolution  79 

right  relations  to  God  and  His  law.  The  attainment 
of  this  object  implies  a  steady  advance  toward  a  higher 
national  life,  and  a  fuller  preparedness  of  the  people  to 
accept  the  privileges  and  duties  of  a  cultured  civili- 
zation. Without  this  recognition  of  duty  to  the  state, 
and  the  development  of  an  aspiring  national  sentiment 
in  the  direction  of  political  order,  industrial  progress, 
and  social  morality,  even  the  best  results  in  individual 
character  will  lose  much  of  their  efficacy  and  value. 

The  future  of  nations  is,  therefore,  in  a  very  real 
sense  marked  out  and  determined  by  the  reception 
they  give  to  missionary  agencies,  and  the  ascendancy 
which  Christian  ideals  attain  in  their  individual  and 
social  development.  The  "  principle  of  projected  effi- 
ciency," so  emphasized  by  Mr.  Benjamin  Kidd,  is  an  ex- 
cellent formula  for  the  larger  utility  and  helpful 
tendency  of  missions  in  social  and  national  evolution. 
That  projected  potency  which  works  for  the  future 
building  up  of  nations  is  embodied  in  missionary 
activities.  These  carry  in  themselves  an  efficiency 
which  can  make  one  generation  an  operative  factor  in 
another  to  produce  a  resultant  uplift  to  higher  levels 
of  life. 

To  many  who  have  some  knowledge  of  Oriental 
nations  it  may  seem  to  be  a  difficult,  if  not  a  hopeless, 
undertaking  to  lead  them  to  appreciate  and  strive  after 
the  finer  ideals  of  Christian  civilization.  It  is  just  in 
this  connection  that  the  lessons  of  history  are  pertinent 
and  incontrovertible.  Teutonic  culture  and  Anglo- 
Saxon  civilization — let  us  not  forget  it — have  developed 
from  the  fierce  temper  and  barbaric  social  code  of  the 
races  of  Northern  Europe.  Thus,  along  the  road  of 
slow  and  painful  advance  nations  now  exemplifying 


80  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

the  highest  civilization  of  the  age  have  already  walked, 
and  others  will  in  due  time  follow  in  their  footsteps. 
The  Japan,  the  Korea,  the  China,  and  the  India,  of  to- 
day, as  compared  with  the  status  of  those  same  nations 
a  generation  or  two  ago,  are  examples  of  an  Oriental 
Christendom  in  the  making.  Faith  based  not  only  on 
the  promises  of  God,  but  upon  visible  historical  prec- 
edent, may  rest  assured  of  this,  but  there  must  be 
patience  while  the  "  increasing  purpose  "  of  the  cen- 
turies is  being  realized. 

Questions  which  are  identified  with  the  national  life 
of  a  people  pertain  to  such  matters  as  the  form  and 
animus  of  government,  the  maintenance  and  vigilant 
guardianship  of  liberty,  the  establishment  and  enjoy- 
ment of  civil  rights  and  privileges,  the  conduct  of 
politics,  the  enactments  of  legislation  and  their  ad- 
ministration as  law,  the  personnel  of  public  service,  the 
adjustment  of  international  relationships,  and  the  de- 
fense of  the  State.  In  connection  with  such  questions, 
the  influence  of  Christianity  need  not  be  revolutionary 
in  order  to  be  helpful.  It  may  exercise  a  transforming 
and  guiding  power  which  will  lead  a  nation  by  easy 
stages  of  progress  out  of  comparative  barbarism  into 
the  heritage  of  civilization.  In  many  respects  Eastern 
nations,  left  to  themselves  in  isolation,  dependent  upon 
their  own  resources,  had  reached,  probably,  their  limit 
in  the  progress  toward  a  higher  civilization.  If  there 
was  to  be  further  advance,  some  outside  help  was 
seemingly  essential.  This  might  come  as  a  gift  from 
without,  as  a  leading  of  Providence,  or  as  a  discovery 
based  upon  observation  of  the  status  in  other  nations, 
and  in  this  way  it  may  become  largely  self -sought  and 
assimilated  with  an  intelligent  recognition  of  its  value. 


Missions  and  National  Evolution  81 

It  need  not  necessarily  denationalize  them,  but  should 
rather  shape  their  further  development  in  essential 
harmony  with  national  characteristics.  In  this  con- 
nection the  influence  of  Christian  missions  has  been 
both  timely,  and,  to  a  remarkable  degree,  adapted  to 
this  higher  ministry.  The  unique  part  which  each 
nation  has  to  play  in  human  history,  and  the  special 
contribution  of  service  which  it  is  to  render  in  the 
interests  of  world  civilization,  will  lose  none  of  their 
distinctive  features  through  the  entrance  of  the  leaven 
of  a  common  Christianity. 

During  recent  years  we  have  witnessed  events  of  strik- 
ing significance  which  have  happened  in  the  nations  of 
the  Far  East,  and  of  the  Near  East.  These  events 
stand  for  revolution  rather  than  evolution,  so  complete 
is  the  change  they  represent,  so  prophetic  of  a  new 
national  destiny  for  mighty  races  now  coming  to  their 
own.  No  one  can  expound  ex  cathedra  just  what 
measure  of  influence  missions  may  have  had,  or  will 
continue  to  have,  in  furthering  a  new  national  life  in 
Japan,  Korea,  China,  India,  Turkey,  and  Persia,  just  as 
no  one  can  venture  to  unfold  the  secret  workings  of 
God's  providential  guidance  and  sovereign  oversight 
of  world  changes.  Of  this  we  may  be  sure,  however, 
that  God  and  missions  are  partners  working  together 
for  the  highest  welfare  of  nations.  Are  not  missions 
the  very  agency  which  God  has  chosen  for  the  ex- 
tension of  His  kingdom  ?  Has  He  not  commanded 
them,  and  committed  them  to  His  Church  in  trust  for 
the  world,  and  promised  to  bless  them,  and  do  we  not 
see  signs  which  point  to  the  sure  fulfillment  of  His 
promise  ?  The  leaves  of  the  tree  of  life  are  already 
shown  to  be  "  for  the  healing  of  the  nations." 


82  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

In  this  age  of  the  world  it  is  becoming  increasingly- 
evident  that  nations  can  no  longer  remain  isolated,  or 
live  a  separate,  exclusive  life,  out  of  touch  with  the 
rest  of  mankind.  International  relationships  are  al- 
ready world-embracing.  Missions,  therefore,  in  so  far 
as  they  contribute  to  the  moulding  of  the  national  life 
of  peoples  whose  historic  development  seems  to  have 
been  hitherto  arrested,  are  a  factor  in  shaping  and 
furthering  the  world's  international  amenities.  It  is 
by  no  means  a  matter  of  indifference  to  Christendom 
what  kind  of  a  nation  Japan  is  to  be  ;  it  is  even  now, 
in  fact,  a  question  of  absorbing  interest  and  deep  mo- 
ment. China  is  already  at  the  gateway  of  national 
power  and  influence,  and  has  become  an  important 
factor  in  the  sphere  of  international  politics.  The 
whole  East  is  stirred  with  a  new  life,  and  points  of 
contact  with  the  outside  world  are  fast  multiplying. 
The  service  which  missions  have  thus  far  rendered 
among  these  different  peoples  in  preparing  them  for 
creditable  entrance  into  relationships  of  international 
rapprochement  is  of  higher  value  than  is  generally 
recognized. 

The  gradual  discipline  and  training  which  missions 
may  be  said  to  exert  upon  the  national  life,  however 
clear  it  may  be  to  those  who  are  intimately  identified 
with  missionary  activities,  is  not  so  likely  to  be  im- 
mediately apparent  to  a  casual  or  remote  observer.  In 
some  of  its  more  obscure  phases  it  may  even  seem  to 
be  of  the  nature  of  an  inference  based  upon  a  high  de- 
gree of  probability,  or  a  conviction  inspired  by  faith 
rather  than  by  sight,  in  the  minds  of  students  of  con- 
temporary history.  As  time  passes,  however,  it  will 
become  more  manifest,  and  may  finally  appear  as  a 


Missions  and  National  Evolution  83 

demonstrated  sequence  supported  by  clear  evidence, 
coming  into  view  more  and  more  in  the  historic  un- 
foldings  of  our  modern  world. 

There  are  many  signs  at  present  that  missions  are 
surely  vindicating  themselves  by  a  quiet  and  unostenta- 
tious revelation  of  their  mighty  ministry  to  the  world. 
There  is  nothing  spectacular  about  them,  but  they  move 
on  with  majestic  and  resistless  moral  power,  slowly 
lifting  great  masses  of  mankind  to  higher  levels  of  life, 
and  changing  for  the  better  the  intellectual,  social,  and 
even  national  progress  of  the  world.  Each  new  genera- 
tion of  the  hitherto  backward  races  of  human  society 
which  missions  have  touched  and  moulded,  finds  itself 
quickened  with  incentives,  and  inspired  with  hopes, 
which  give  a  new  outlook  to  life.  A  discerning  student 
of  the  present  rapid  development  of  nations  which 
were  formerly  regarded  as  in  many  respects  inferior  to 
Christendom,  will  find  the  most  assuring  evidence  that 
an  intellectual,  social,  moral,  religious,  and,  indirectly, 
political  or  national  force  of  mysterious  potency  and 
manifold  efficiency,  in  shaping  the  destiny  of  these 
hitherto  backward  races,  both  in  their  individual  and 
collective  aspects. 

"We  believe,  and  we  do  not  hesitate  to  maintain,  that 
in  the  present-day  horoscope  of  national  evolution  the 
God  of  Creation,  Providence,  and  Love,  who  is  also  the 
Author  and  Sponsor  of  Missions,  should  be  regarded  as 
devoting  Himself  to  a  large  and  benign  use  of  this 
humble  instrumentality  to  give  light  and  leading  to 
nations  which  have  never  before  known  such  a  wide- 
open  door  to  their  higher  destiny.  The  subject  calls 
for  research  and  thoughtful  attention,  and  if  in  our 
closer  investigation,  as  we  may  study  it,  we  discover, 


84  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

wherever  missions  have  wrought,  that  in  the  national 
outlook  of  non-Christian  peoples  there  are  clearer  visions 
of  freedom,  and  finer  conceptions  of  patriotism  ;  if  we 
find  better  and  wiser  legislation,  and  more  adequate 
views  of  the  sacredness  of  law  and  justice  ;  if  higher 
standards  of  administrative  method  are  being  estab- 
lished, and  a  more  serious  sense  of  the  responsibility  of 
authority  is  manifest,  then  our  case  is  so  far  probable. 
If,  moreover,  loftier  ideals  of  public  service,  and  more 
intelligent  recognition  of  the  import  and  value  of  inter- 
national relationships  are  taking  their  place  in  the 
national  consciousness,  and  if  we  discover  increasingly 
valuable  contributions  not  only  by  missionaries  them- 
selves, but  by  educated  natives,  brought  to  the  common 
interests  of  science  and  civilization — the  larger  life  of 
the  world's  progress — we  may  regard  all  this  as  addi- 
tional evidence  of  worth.  If  it  is  further  manifest  that 
these  signs  of  a  higher  national  and  social  development, 
appearing  among  peoples  hitherto  backward  and  stolid, 
are  traceable  in  any  appreciable  measure  to  the  inspira- 
tion and  guidance  of  missionaries,  then  surely  we  shall 
have  good  reason  to  regard  these  indirect  results  of 
missions  as  of  real  and  substantial  value,  and  hail  them 
as  signs  of  a  new  dawn  in  history. 


IV 

Commerce  and  Missions 


I  go  back  to  Africa  to  try  to  make  an  open  path  for  commerce  and 
Christianity. 

David  Livingstone. 

I  do  not  claim  that  every  good  result  is  due  to  missionary  work.  The 
merchants,  the  seamen,  the  diplomatists,  and  the  consuls  have  done  much 
to  open  up  China  to  commerce  ;  but  the  missionary  has  also  done  his  share. 
Therein  appears  our  worldly  interest — the  interest  of  the  non-religious 
man,  of  the  merchant,  the  carrier,  and  the  manufacturer.  It  must  be  ad- 
mitted that  civilization  promotes  trade — that  the  more  a  nation  becomes 
civilized  the  greater  are  the  wants  of  the  people.  Then,  if  the  missionary 
promotes  civilization,  he  also  promotes  trade.  When  he  opens  a  school 
he  opens  also  a  market. 

Charles  Denby. 

American  missionaries  created  the  cotton  lace  industry  in  Turkey, 
which  has  become  a  national  asset.  This  year  the  exportation  of  Turkish 
cotton  lace  to  America  will  amount  to  about  $1,000,000,  as  against  half  of 
that  amount  in  191 1.  Manual  training-schools  have  been  started  in 
Turkey  by  American  missionaries,  so  also  model  experimental  farms.  At 
Robert  College,  in  Constantinople,  they  have  an  up-to-date  engineering 
school — the  only  one  in  Turkey  ;  at  the  Syrian  Protestant  College,  in 
Beirut,  they  have  a  school  of  commerce,  by  far  the  best  of  its  kind  in  the 
Ottoman  Empire.  .  .  .  Equally  important  from  a  commercial  view- 
point is  the  service  rendered  by  American  missionaries  in  Turkey  in  ex- 
ploring the  remoter  sections  of  the  country.  The  journey,  for  instance, 
undertaken  by  Eli  Smith  and  H.  G.  O.  Dwight  from  Constantinople  to  the 
borders  of  Persia,  in  1830,  may  properly  be  compared  to  the  Lewis  and 
Clark  Expedition  across  the  American  Continent.  .  .  .  On  the 
Bosporus  are  going  up  great  buildings  these  days  intended  for  the  Ameri- 
can College  for  Girls,  which  soon  is  to  be  transferred  from  Scutari,  on  the 
Asiastic  side.  They  are  introducing  into  these  buildings  the  most  up-to- 
date  appliances  for  steam  heating,  electric  lighting,  and  plumbing,  all  of 
which — along  with  doors,  windows,  reenforcing  steel,  in  fact,  all  material 
besides  the  building  machinery,  except  the  cement  and  some  of  the 
structural  iron — has  been  brought  from  the  United  States.  There  is 
nowhere  in  Turkey  such  perfect  equipment  for  any  public  or  private 
structure. 

G.  Bei  Ravndal, 
American  Consul-  General  at  Constantinople. 


IV 

COMMERCE  AND  MISSIONS  ' 

IT  should  be  freely  acknowledged  that  commerce  has 
rendered  valuable  service  to  missions,  giving  to 
them  the  benefit  of  its  facilities  of  communication 
and  transportation,  as  well  as  ministering  in  many  ways 
to  their  advancement,  and  to  the  supply  of  their  varied 
needs.  Since  the  time  when  the  earliest  Christian  mis- 
sions followed  the  great  trade  routes  of  the  world,  and 
especially  since  the  introduction  of  steam  and  electricity, 
missions  have  benefited  by  the  means  of  transport  which 
commerce  has  established  and  maintained.  In  spite  of 
much  on  the  part  of  commerce  that  incidentally  has 
been  detrimental  to  the  missionary  cause,  a  profitable 
interchange  of  service  can  nevertheless  be  demonstrated. 
The  evils  and  sins  of  commerce  are  not  essentially 
identified  with  it.  Its  nobler  spirit  and  its  more  hon- 
ourable methods  may  be  regarded  as  both  favourable 
and  serviceable  to  the  aims  of  the  missionary.  Mis- 
sions, on  the  other  hand,  have,  in  their  turn,  proved 
helpful  to  commerce  by  their  insistence  upon  moral 
standards,  by  their  discipline  in  matters  of  good  faith 
and  moral  rectitude,  by  their  suggestions,  at  least  among 
their  own  native  constituencies,  as  to  improved  financial 
methods,  by  their  promotion  of  trade  with  the  outer 

1  Men  and  Missions,  September,  1910.     (Published  also  in  booklet 
form  by  the  Laymen's  Missionary  Movement.) 

87 


88  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

world,  and  by  the  stimulus  they  have  given  to  the  in- 
troduction of  the  conveniences  and  facilities  of  modern 
civilization.  They  have,  moreover,  been  sponsors  for 
industrial  training  in  many  fields,  which  has  given  an 
economic  worth  to  native  converts,  and  turned  them 
from  their  trails  of  blood  and  plunder  into  paths  of 
useful  labour,  and  the  cultivation  of  peaceful  industry. 
We  have  a  broad  range  of  research  here  open  to  us 
in  this  inquiry  as  to  the  relations  between  missions  and 
commerce — not  international  trade  merely,  but  also 
commercial  progress  in  its  local  environment  among 
native  races.  We  are  to  inquire  whether  these  two 
agencies,  commerce  from  without,  and  mission  stimu- 
lus and  enlightenment  in  various  fields,  have  been 
workers  together  for  the  commercial  benefit  of  the 
world.  Have  missions  been  influential  to  any  extent 
in  opening  avenues  for  commerce,  and  in  promoting  its 
activities?  Have  they  ministered  to  its  moral  tone, 
and  taught  lessons  in  the  school  of  integrity  ?  Have 
they  helped  to  broaden  the  world's  markets,  to  swell 
the  ranks  of  both  the  consumer  and  the  producer,  and 
to  enlarge  the  range  of  both  supply  and  demand  ?  Is 
commerce  historically  in  debt  to  missions,  and  has  the 
past  century  greatly  increased  that  indebtedness  ?  May 
we  regard  the  opportunities  of  international  commerce 
as  due  in  part  to  the  cooperation  of  missions,  by  reason 
of  their  ministrations — persuasive,  illuminating,  and  in- 
structive— in  removing  hindrances  to  openings  among 
native  races,  and  in  promoting  an  interchange  of  out- 
going and  incoming  commodities  ?  If  it  can  be  shown 
with  reasonable  clearness  that  even  indirectly  the  influ- 
ence of  missions  has  been  helpful  in  these  respects, 
should  we  not  frankly  credit  the  missionary  enterprise 


Commerce  and  Missions  89 

with  a  share  in  bringing  about  favourable  conditions 
which  have  manifestly  proved  a  benefit  and  an  incentive 
to  commerce  ? 

It  will  not  escape  the  thoughtful  student  that  it  is 
the  progressive  native  races  which  invite  commerce, 
and  offer  ever  enlarging  scope  to  its  activities.  Edu- 
cation gives  an  inquiring  outward  vision  to  provincial 
minds,  and  calls  for  the  best  the  world  can  bring  to  it 
of  the  material  facilities  and  the  industrial  achieve- 
ments of  the  higher  civilizations.  It  is  confessedly  the 
missionary  who  has  put  to  school  the  backward  native 
races  of  the  world,  and  has  inspired  them  with  desires 
for  higher  living,  and  led  them  to  a  finer  appreciation 
of  the  better  things  of  life.  International  intercourse 
and  good  understanding  manifestly  promoted  by  mis- 
sions bespeak  commercial  interchange,  while  trade  is 
favoured  and  advanced  by  all  that  missions  are  doing 
to  establish  inter-racial  rapprochement  throughout  the 
earth.  The  services  of  the  missionary  as  a  pioneer 
explorer,  and  a  promoter  of  industrial  missions,  has 
blazed  a  pathway  for  commerce.  The  merchant  often 
reaps  a  harvest  in  trade  where  the  missionary  has 
previously  sown  the  seeds  of  ethical,  social  and  eco- 
nomic transformation.  In  this  general  sense  the  mak- 
ing of  a  broader  and  finer  national  life  becomes  the 
guarantee  of  enlarged  commercial  intercourse.  A 
study  of  the  growth  of  trade  in  the  countries  of  the 
Far  East  will  show  that  it  has  generally  been  con- 
temporaneous with  missionary  progress,  which  has 
manifestly  had  a  part  to  play — not  often  conspicuous, 
indeed,  but  no  less  real  in  its  promotion  and  develop- 
ment. 

For  over  a  century  the  modern  missionary  movement 


90  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

has  been  quietly  at  work,  vitalizing  the  dormant  life  of 
backward  continents.  Little  attention  has  been  given 
to  it  by  the  great  preoccupied  world,  and  some  have 
even  condemned  the  varied  services  which  missions 
have  rendered  in  distant  regions  as  useless  waste. 
Some  have  even  ventured  to  berate  the  whole  mission- 
ary enterprise  as  an  impertinent  intrusion,  and  it  has 
been  made  the  sport  of  supercilious  critics,  and  in 
some  quarters  it  has  even  been  regarded  as  a  trouble- 
some handicap  to  plans  of  commercial  and  political 
exploitation.  Yet  all  this  time  missions  have  been 
quietly  and  patiently  toiling  for  the  introduction  of  a 
better  life,  a  larger  outlook,  finer  moral  standards,  a 
higher  intelligence,  and  a  fuller  preparation  of  great 
races  for  a  swiftly  approaching  era  of  social,  industrial, 
political,  and  commercial  progress,  which  has  already 
announced  itself  as  a  great  historic  turning-point  in  the 
progress  of  mankind.  These  great  races  among  which 
this  quiet  ministry  of  uplift  and  transformation  has 
been  going  on  may  be,  after  all,  children  of  destiny  in 
the  world's  history.  No  one  can  venture  to  predict  the 
career  which  awaits  the  great  nations  of  the  East  when 
they  have  found  themselves,  and  have  eagerly  entered 
upon  the  inheritance  of  the  riches  which  the  discov- 
eries, inventions,  and  achievements  of  Western  civiliza- 
tion have  made  ready  for  them  to  appropriate  and  use. 
Do  we  realize  what  a  stimulus  to  commerce  is  the 
spread  of  intelligence  for  which  missions  have  been 
sponsors  during  long  and  obscure  years  of  patient  labour? 
Commerce  may  be  said  to  depend  for  its  success  not 
only  upon  favouring  economic  conditions,  but  upon 
certain  mental  gifts  and  training  suited  to  promote 
business  interchange.     Some  of  this  mental  training 


Commerce  and  Missions  91 

pertains  to  the  individual,  and  some  to  the  status  of 
society.  Commerce  does  not  depend  for  its  prosperity 
simply  upon  the  existence  of  good  facilities  for  trans- 
portation, and  wise,  safe  methods  of  financial  exchange, 
useful  as  these  may  be,  but  where  it  is  to  be  introduced 
among  inferior  races  there  must  be  also  a  certain  meas- 
ure  of  receptivity  on  the  part  of  those  among  whom  it 
is  sought  to  establish  a  market.  There  must  be  a  cer- 
tain responsive  spirit  of  enterprise  in  those  whose  trade 
is  sought,  a  degree  of  intelligence  and  insight  as  to  the 
advantages  offered,  a  recognition  of  the  superior  quality 
of  the  wares  proffered,  a  capacity  to  appreciate  and  en- 
joy new  things,  a  measure  of  dissatisfaction  with  the 
status  of  a  rude  and  savage  environment — in  short,  an 
all-round  awakening  to  a  new  and  broader  life,  and  an 
aroused  consciousness  of  the  existence  of  an  outside 
world,  with  its  abounding  supply  of  delectable  and  use- 
ful commodities,  desirable  for  their  intrinsic  worth,  and 
their  fitness  to  satisfy  the  natural  cravings  of  culture 
and  quickened  lives.  In  the  light  of  these  considera- 
tions, it  becomes  a  question  whether  commerce  itself 
might  not  wisely  invest  in  missions,  on  behalf  of  its 
own  interests,  since  education,  social  uplift,  and  mental 
receptivity  are  everywhere  the  accompaniment  of  that 
new  and  broadened  life  which  missions  introduce,  grid 
are  therefore  of  undoubted  value  in  opening  the  way 
for  commercial  and  national  achievement. 

It  becomes,  therefore,  a  function — in  large  part  an 
unconscious  function — of  missions  to  create  conditions 
favourable  to  commerce.  Their  manifest  tendency  to 
stimulate  the  mind,  to  arouse  energy,  to  quicken  ambi- 
tion, to  bring  native  races  into  a  sympathetic  attitude 
toward  civilization,  and  to  widen  their  knowledge  of 


92  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

the  world  and  its  wonders,  makes  the  ministry  of 
missions  helpful  in  promoting  commercial  intercourse. 
A  missionary  has  put  it  concisely  and  suggestively  in 
the  remark :  "  The  first  call  of  a  convert  from  heathenism 
is  for  clean  clothes,  and  a  better  house."  Clean  cloth- 
ing is  suggestive  of  a  long  list  of  textiles,  and  a  better 
house  implies  the  importation  of  a  cargo  of  industrial 
products.  Native  races  that  accept  Christianity  almost 
invariably  increase  their  imports.  It  has  been  estimated 
that  English  missions  promote  trade  to  the  value  of  ten 
pounds  for  every  pound  of  outlay  expended  in  their 
founding  and  support.  The  significance  of  this  to  the 
United  States  is  obvious  when  we  consider  that,  within 
thirty  years,  from  the  fourth  place  among  the  nations 
as  regards  exports  we  advanced,  in  1905,  to  the  first 
place  among  all  the  nations  as  an  exporting  country, 
although  of  late  we  have  lost  slightly  the  primacy  of 
that  year.  According  to  the  "  Statesman's  Year  Book  " 
of  1912,  we  have  become  third  in  rank,  Great  Britain 
and  Germany  outranking  us,  but  the  latter  only 
slightly. 

As  a  typical  illustration  of  the  general  remarks  of 
preceding  paragraphs,  let  us  look  at  one  of  the  practical 
results  of  missionary  education.  It  naturally  creates  a 
demand  for  literature.  Literature,  in  its  turn,  calls 
for  presses,  and  all  the  facilities  for  printing,  elec- 
trotyping,  binding  and  distributing  of  books,  both  large 
and  small,  as  well  as  periodicals,  newspapers,  circulars, 
pamphlets,  and  advertisements,  in  all  their  variety. 
From  the  seed  which  missionary  education  plants,  un- 
known millions  of  prospective  readers  will  soon  call — 
are  even  now  beginning  to  call  loudly — through  com- 
mercial channels,  for  presses,  and  machinery  to  run 


Commerce  and  Missions  93 

them,  as  well  as  for  paper,  type,  ink,  electrotyping, 
cutting,  and  typesetting  machines,  engraving  and 
illustrating  facilities,  and  every  other  addenda  and 
necessary  tool  of  journalism  and  the  publishing  business 
ji  general.  This  is  true  to  a  remarkable  extent  of 
China.  "We  are  accustomed  to  honour  pioneers  in  every 
department  of  enterprise ;  the  missionary  is  surely 
entitled  to  be  ranked  as  such  in  this  business  of  awaken- 
ing potential  brain  power,  and  stimulating  the  hunger 
of  the  mind  for  those  intellectual  supplies  which  require 
an  extensive  importation  of  facilities,  and  the  establish- 
ment of  large  industrial  plants  to  furnish  them.  We 
might  refer  here  also  to  the  stimulus  given  to  this  depart- 
ment of  trade  outside  of  the  direct  efforts  of  missionaries 
to  supply  this  intellectual  pabulum.  The  Asiatic  has  a 
keen  scent  for  new  business  which  is  profitable.  The 
whole  enterprise  of  printing,  quite  outside  of  the  circle 
of  missions,  has  entered  upon  an  era  of  expansion  and 
growth,  especially  in  China,  where  journalism  and 
literary  production  are  in  a  state  of  phenomenal 
efflorescence.  In  so  far  as  missionary  education  has 
had  its  influence  in  awakening  China,  it  has  also  been 
of  service  in  promoting  the  commercial  activity  involved 
in  the  intellectual  renaissance  of  that  great  nation. 

The  typical  illustration  given  in  the  preceding  para- 
graph might  be  multiplied  and  traced  out  in  many 
other  directions.  "The  Gospel  has  added  a  second 
story  to  our  houses,"  remarked  a  mission  convert  in 
"Western  Asia.  The  statement  might  be  supplemented 
by  a  reference  to  the  glass  windows,  the  kerosene  lamps, 
the  stoves,  the  table-ware,  the  furniture,  the  pictures, 
the  plumbing,  the  sewing-machines,  and  the  new  st}rle 
of  clothing,  which  are  all  quite  likely  to  be  the  addenda 


94  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

of  the  added  story.  There  is  surely  a  hidden  affinity 
between  the  marvellous  commercial  expansion  of  the 
present  age,  planning  to  take  possession  of  all  continents, 
and  the  enterprise  of  missions,  aiming  at  the  enlighten- 
ment and  moral  transformation  of  all  races.  There 
must  be  a  deeply  significant  coincidence  in  the  com- 
mercial stir  and  expansion  of  the  times,  and  the  vivify- 
ing touch  of  missionary  enterprise,  which  is  awakening 
dormant  races  to  behold  the  shining  of  a  great  light, 
and  to  hail  the  dawn  of  a  brightening  day. 

Henry  Venn,  a  distinguished  secretary  of  the  Church 
Missionary  Society,  half  a  century  ago  estimated  that, 
"  When  a  missionary  had  been  abroad  twenty  years  he 
was  worth  ten  thousand  pounds  a  year  to  British  com- 
merce." It  is  a  little  over  fifty  years  (1857)  since 
Livingstone  remarked  in  the  Senate  House  at  Cambridge 
University :  "I  go  back  to  Africa  to  try  to  make  an 
open  path  for  commerce  and  Christianity.5'  That  "  open 
path  for  commerce,"  applying  the  expression  to  the 
entire  African  Continent,  has  already  led  to  markets  of 
gigantic  promise,  which  in  the  estimation  of  some 
optimistic  judges  have  even  more  prospective  value  than 
those  of  Eastern  Asia,  since  Japan  and  China  may  ere 
long  compete  with  the  West  in  production,  while  Africa 
in  all  probability  will  remain  for  generations  chiefly  a 
consumer. 

Surely  the  day  of  Africa's  commercial  as  well  as  po- 
litical renaissance  has  dawned  in  a  flood  of  light  athwart 
the  entire  continent.  The  immense  coast  line  of  Africa 
offers  ready  access  to  the  ships  of  all  nations.  Eailways 
by  the  score,  finished  even  now  to  the  extent  of  many 
thousand  miles,  are  pushing  into  the  interior,  while 
rivers  and  lakes  are  traversed  by  a  constantly  increas- 


Commerce  and  Missions  95 

ing  fleet  of  steamers.  The  "  Cape  to  Cairo  "  line,  the 
Congo  Railway,  and  that  wonderful  line  into  the  heart 
of  Uganda,  are  prophetic  of  an  era  of  railway  expan- 
sion of  continental  proportions.  "  This  is  our  victory," 
commerce  doubtless  will  say,  and  this  may  be  conceded 
in  large  measure  ;  but  the  influence  and  helpfulness  of 
missions  as  factors  in  the  transformation  cannot  be 
justly  ignored.  All  the  facilities  for  commerce  may 
exist  in  certain  sections  of  the  continent,  and  yet  the 
developments  of  trade  may  be  comparatively  meagre. 
The  native  community  may  be  still  inert  and  unambi- 
tious, and  the  old  list  of  goods,  and  the  childish  trinkets 
of  barter  meanwhile  satisfy  every  requirement.  "  Tools 
are  not  bought,"  wrote  the  late  Dr.  Grenfell  of  the 
Baptist  Mission  on  the  Congo,  concerning  certain  inte- 
rior regions,  "  because  no  one  has  taught  the  people  their 
use,  and  the  old  style  of  temporary  hut  remains,  in 
which  the  appointments  and  furniture  of  civilization 
would  be  absurdly  out  of  place,  even  if  there  were  any 
desire  to  possess  them.  Nor  does  native  energy,  as  a 
rule,  look  beyond  immediate  and  pressing  wants,  and 
thus  the  fine  wares  of  commerce  possess  little  or  no  at- 
traction. Trade  lags,  and  the  old  times,  with  their 
simple  wants  and  primitive  conditions,  drag  themselves 
along  from  generation  to  generation."  In  other  locali- 
ties, however,  where  missionary  enterprise  has  entered, 
and  its  quickening  influences  have  been  felt,  a  change 
comes  over  the  native  attitude  toward  civilization,  and 
all  that  it  stands  for  and  introduces.  Commerce  soon 
recognizes  the  meaning  of  this  educational  and  economic 
transformation,  and  is  apt  quickly  to  avail  itself  of  the 
opportunities  thus  secured. 

It  may  seem  somewhat  imaginative  to  connect  these 


96  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

great  railway  achievements,  to  which  we  have  referred, 
even  in  a  remote  way,  with  missions,  and  yet  it  is 
worthy  of  note  that  so  far  back  as  1860,  at  the  time  of 
the  consecration  of  Bishop  Mackenzie  as  a  missionary  to 
what  is  now  the  Nyasaland  Protectorate,  Bishop  Gray 
designated  the  work  entrusted  to  the  new  bishop  as 
"  the  first  link  in  a  chain  of  missions  which  should 
stretch  one  day  from  Cape  Town  to  Cairo."  Living- 
stone was  a  noted  pioneer  in  that  section  of  Africa 
even  at  an  earlier  date,  and  since  then  English,  Scotch, 
Continental,  and  American  missions,  all  along  that 
proposed  route,  have  been  contributing  appreciable  aid 
in  opening  the  way  and  building  the  road-bed  of  civi- 
lization for  the  "  Cape  to  Cairo  "  express,  which  now 
already  rolls  northward  until  it  crosses  the  Zambesi  at 
Victoria  Falls,  and  from  the  north  approaches  toward 
the  boundary  lines  of  Uganda. 

The  magnificent  achievement  of  the  Uganda  Railway 
must  be  regarded,  of  course,  as  one  of  the  colossal 
ventures  of  British  imperialism,  but  back  of  the  railway 
is  that  initial  missionary  occupation  of  Uganda,  in  1877, 
where  a  group  of  devoted  men  and  women  lived  for  a 
period  of  thirteen  years,  without  British  protection.  It 
was  Mackay  who  first  suggested  the  (at  that  time)  al- 
most unthinkable  project  of  "  a  railway  from  the  coast 
to  the  lake,"  and,  in  1891,  when  the  Imperial  British 
East  Africa  Company  proposed  to  evacuate  Uganda, 
and  the  British  Government  hesitated  as  to  whether  it 
was  worth  while  to  assume  the  responsible  control,  it 
was  the  financial  subsidy  of  forty  thousand  pounds 
placed  in  the  treasury  of  the  Imperial  British  East 
Africa  Company — in  large  part  by  the  supporters  of 
missions  in  England — which  tided  over  the  situation  for 


Commerce  and  Missions  97 

a  year,  and  delayed  the  date  assigned  for  the  evacua- 
tion until  March  31,  1893.  The  patrons  of  the  Church 
Missionary  Society  advanced  sixteen  thousand  pounds 
of  this  amount,  and  their  enthusiasm,  backed  by  the 
moral  pressure  of  the  friends  of  missions  in  England, 
under  the  leadership  of  the  Church  Missionary  Society, 
proved  an  influential  factor  in  securing  the  appoint- 
ment of  the  Government  Commission  of  Inquiry,  under 
Sir  Gerald  Portal,  in  1892,  to  determine  the  best  solu- 
tion of  the  problem  of  Uganda.  The  result  of  these 
tentative  inquiries  on  the  part  of  the  government  was 
the  establishment  of  a  British  Protectorate,  declared  in 
1891,  and  this  was  followed  by  the  Uganda  Railway, 
opened  in  1902,  from  Mombasa  to  Port  Florence,  on  the 
Yictoria  Nyanza.  The  building  of  this  railway  involved 
an  outlay  by  the  British  Government  of  £5,550,000,  or 
about  $27,300,000.  It  is  584  miles  in  length,  and  scales 
mountain  heights  at  an  altitude  of  over  eight  thousand 
feet.  In  his  report  advocating  the  establishment  of  a 
British  Protectorate,  Sir  Gerald  Portal  stated  that  he 
considered  Uganda  to  be  the  key  to  the  Nile  Valley, 
securing  entrance  as  it  does  to  some  of  the  richest 
sections  of  Central  Africa,  and  holding  out,  therefore, 
the  promise  of  profitable  commerce.  The  missionary 
devotion  of  that  initial  dash  into  Uganda,  those  heroic 
years  of  lonely  and  perilous  missionary  occupation,  and 
that  alert  and  strenuous  rally  of  the  friends  of  the  mis- 
sion at  the  critical  hour,  should  count  for  much  in  any 
fair  and  just  estimate  of  the  historic  forces  to  which  the 
credit  of  the  present  outcome  in  Uganda  belongs.  The 
commercial  prospects  of  that  portion  of  Central  Africa 
and  its  large  outlying  regions  have  surely  been  greatly 
improved  by  the  fact  that  the  missionary  type  of  civi- 


98  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

lization  was  first  introduced,  and  with  its  enlightening 
and  educating  influences  has  gained  a  powerful  hold  on 
the  people.  This  fact  will  do  much  to  safeguard  the 
best  interests  of  commerce. 

In  the  Nyasaland  Protectorate,  around  Lake  Nyasa, 
we  find  that  further  credit  may  be  accorded  to  missions, 
in  view  of  the  encouragement  and  practical  stimulus 
which  they  have  given  to  commerce.  It  was  by  this 
route  that  Livingstone's  "  open  path "  entered  the 
continent,  and  in  his  own  haunts  around  Lake  Nyasa 
trade  expansion  has  been  marked.  Blantyre  has  be- 
come the  commercial  centre  of  British  Central  Africa, 
and  there  is  a  growing  demand  in  that  region  for  the 
trained  and  educated  native  employees  that  the  educa- 
tional and  industrial  departments  of  the  missions  are 
supplying.  It  was  a  turbulent  and  warlike  region,  and 
the  attention  of  the  natives  was  about  equally  divided 
among  war  and  plunder  and  the  slave-trade.  The 
lessons  of  legitimate  trade  were  learned  from  the  mis- 
sionary. It  was  regarded  as  the  best  preventive  of 
destructive  tribal  feuds,  while  also  providing  a  sub- 
stitute for  the  slave-trade,  and  so  opening  an  easier  and 
safer  way  for  the  natives  to  secure  the  goods  they  ere 
long  craved.  Instead  of  raids,  robbery,  pillage,  the 
horrors  of  the  slave-pen,  and  the  traffic  in  human 
chattels,  they  were  led  to  cultivate  the  soil,  or  engage 
in  some  harmless  and  honest  line  of  trade,  and  thus 
were  enabled  to  secure  in  the  end,  by  peaceful  and  use- 
ful industry,  their  reward  of  calico,  beads,  hatchets, 
and  similar  wares,  so  dear  to  the  native  heart.  That 
"  dogged  little  band  "  of  Scottish  missionaries  were  un- 
questionably the  pioneers  of  legitimate  commerce  in 
Nyasaland,  afterward  known  as  the  British  Central 


Commerce  and  Missions  99 

Africa  Protectorate,  but  recently  named  the  Nyasaland 
Protectorate. 

These  initial  trade  movements  soon  became  too 
complex  and  extended  for  missionary  supervision.  It 
was,  morever,  not  properly  within  that  sphere  of  serv- 
ice, and  so  in  response  to  representations  giving  the 
facts  of  the  situation,  there  was  formed,  as  early  as 
1876,  a  Chartered  Company  in  Scotland,  with  sufficient 
capital,  and  the  necessary  organization  to  assume  the 
responsible  local  management  of  the  trade,  and  develop 
the  important  traffic  along  productive  lines.  The 
Livingstonia  Central  Africa  Trading  Company,  better 
known  as  the  African  Lakes  Corporation,  was  the  re- 
sult, with  a  layman,  Mr.  James  Stevenson,  a  devoted 
friend  and  supporter  of  missions,  as  its  chairman. 
This  company  in  time  introduced  steamers,  and  so 
more  speedily  built  up  trade.  In  1879,  its  only  steam 
vessel  in  the  region  was  the  Lady  JVyasa.  It  has  now 
a  whole  fleet  of  steamers  navigating  the  lake.  At  the 
beginning  of  1875  there  was  not  a  steamer  on  either 
Lake  Nyasa  or  Lake  Tanganyika,  but  in  October  of 
that  year  the  little  Ilala,  with  a  Scottish  missionary  at 
the  helm,  entered  the  waters  of  Lake  Nyasa.  Gathered 
on  its  deck  were  the  members  of  the  Livingstonia  Mis- 
sion,  and  they  were  so  impressed  with  the  significance 
of  the  incident  that  they  engaged  in  a  brief  season  of 
worship.  Steam  was  shut  off,  and  the  vessel  floated 
calmly  and  silently  on  the  waters,  while  the  noble 
Psalm,  "  All  people  that  on  earth  do  dwell,"  rang  out, 
as  though  to  consecrate  the  achievement  to  the  glory 
of  God.  In  less  than  twenty  years  the  combined  steam 
fleets  of  the  two  lakes  numbered  nearly  forty  vessels. 
The  trade  which  was  established   at  that  time  was 


loo  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

Christian  trade,  free  from  greed  and  fraud,  and  guilt- 
less of  gin  and  other  deadly  products.  Steamers  now 
traverse  the  neighbouring  lakes,  and  navigate  the 
rivers  to  the  coast,  where  at  Chinde  they  meet  the 
ocean  liners  of  British,  German,  Portuguese,  and 
other  companies.  The  railway  from  Chiromo  to 
Blantyre  is  completed,  and  will  no  doubt  ultimately 
be  extended  to  Lake  Nyasa.  In  1910  the  imports  of 
the  Nyasaland  Protectorate  amounted  to  £112,629, 
and  the  exports  to  £110,866,  representing  a  total 
of  $1,087,527. 

It  would  occupy  too  much  space  to  attempt  to  trace 
in  detail  the  missionary  evidence  of  trade  prosperity  in 
South  Africa.  It  is  enough  to  say  that  it  began  under 
missionary  tutelage  among  native  tribes.  In  1870,  the 
venerable  Dr.  Moffat,  speaking  of  what  had  occurred 
under  his  own  observation,  remarked  on  this  subject : 
"  In  former  times  the  natives  could  not  be  prevailed  upon 
to  buy  anything  from  traders  in  the  shape  of  merchan- 
dise, not  even  so  much  as  a  pocket-handkerchief.  Such 
articles  could  not  be  disposed  of,  as  the  natives  were 
not  enlightened  sufficiently  to  appreciate  anything  like 
that.  If  they  did  buy,  it  would  be  only  a  few  trinkets, 
or  some  beads,  but  nothing  of  a  substantial  character 
was  ever  bought.  It  is  not  so  now  (in  1870),  however, 
for  no  less  than  sixty  thousand  pounds'  worth  of  British 
manufactures  pass  yearly  into  the  hands  of  the  native 
tribes  near  and  about  Kuruman." 

About  the  year  1880,  the  Bev.  James  Dalzell,  M.  D., 
a  Scottish  missionary  in  Natal,  made  a  careful  com- 
putation that  a  native  kraal  untouched  by  missions 
called  for  imported  goods  to  the  extent  of  only  two 
pounds  annually ;  while  each  educated  Christian  con- 


Commerce  and  Missions  101 

sumed,  or  required,  imports  every  year  to  the  extent 
of  twenty  pounds.  The  Zulu  Christian  community  at 
that  time  represented  an  aggregate  of  eighty  thousand 
pounds  on  the  import  list  of  Natal.  It  is  reported  con- 
cerning Dr.  Philip  of  the  London  Missionary  Society 
that  as  early  as  1818  he  arranged  with  a  Christian 
merchant  to  open  a  store  in  Bethelsdorp  for  the  pur- 
pose of  awakening  the  spirit  of  trade,  and  bringing  to 
the  attention  of  the  natives  numerous  useful  and  at- 
tractive articles.  To  quote  Dr.  Silvester  Home,  in 
"  The  Story  of  the  L.  M.  S." :  "  The  effect  was  remark- 
able. .  .  .  The  significance  was  that  in  a  very 
short  time  the  whole  aspect  of  Bethelsdorp  underwent 
a  change.  Not  only  were  the  unsightly  huts  replaced 
in  many  instances  by  decent  houses,  but  the  spirit  of 
activity  and  industry  transformed  the  life  of  the 
people.  ...  In  1823  the  village  of  Bethelsdorp 
was  paying  more  than  five  hundred  pounds  a  year  in 
taxes  to  the  government,  and  buying  five  thousand 
pounds'  worth  of  British  goods  every  year." 

It  must  not  be  forgotten  that  missionary  exploration 
is  usually  the  forerunner  of  trade.  The  discovery  of 
native  races  by  missionary  pioneers  admittedly  opens 
the  way  for  commerce,  since  it  heralds  the  coming  of 
the  trader,  gives  the  signal  to  the  enterprise  of  the 
merchant,  and  eventually  does  much,  not  only  to  in- 
sure his  prosperity,  but  his  safety.  We  have  a  clear 
example  of  this  in  the  island  of  New  Guinea,  where 
missionary  courage  and  devotion  may  be  said  to  have 
opened  the  door  both  to  political  sovereignty  and  com- 
mercial enterprise.  British,  Dutch,  and  German  mis- 
sions prepared  the  way  for  the  entrance  of  commerce. 
The  total  population  of  660,000,  of  which  over  one- 


102  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

half  belong  to  British  territory,  have  been,  and  still 
are,  in  process  of  transformation  from  bestial  savagery 
to  civilized  citizenship.  The  line  which  separates  safety 
from  peril,  and  marks  the  limits  of  intelligence  and 
order,  differentiating  the  sphere  of  trade  from  the 
regions  of  rapine  and  barbarity,  has  been  drawn  for  a 
generation  along  the  frontier  made  by  the  missionary 
outposts.  Generous  official  recognition  of  the  political 
value  of  this  preliminary  service  of  missions  has  been 
accorded  by  the  British  authorities,  and  that  there  has 
been  also  a  commercial  value  is  no  less  apparent.  The 
trade  returns  of  British  New  Guinea,  as  reported  for 
1910,  will  sufficiently  indicate  this.  The  imports  of 
that  year  are  stated  in  the  "  Statesman's  Year  Book," 
of  1911,  to  be  £120,369,  and  the  exports,  £101,392, 
making  a  total  valuation  of  £221,761,  or  about 
$1,080,000.  The  sum  total  of  trade  in  German  New 
Guinea  in  1909  amounted  to  $250,846,  the  larger  part 
of  which  was  in  imports.  This  is  commerce  in  mini- 
ature, one  may  say,  but  it  represents  the  advance  of  a 
little  over  a  quarter  of  a  century,  in  a  land  which  for 
ages  had  been  given  over  to  the  most  dismal  and 
menacing  savagery. 

There  are  numerous  islands  in  the  Pacific  that  have 
been  thus  redeemed  from  barbarism,  and  brought 
within  commercial  touch  of  civilization  by  pioneer 
missionary  occupation.  With  the  acceptance  of  Chris- 
tian teachings  the  natives  of  many  of  these  islands  have 
turned  from  their  savagery,  and  given  themselves  to 
agricultural  and  industrial  pursuits.  Many  of  the 
centres  of  missionary  work  in  the  South  Pacific  have 
become  also  centres  of  trade. 

Services  like  these,  it  will  be  acknowledged,  are  in 


Commerce  and  Missions  103 

the  interests  of  commerce.  Let  missionaries  through- 
out the  world  retire  from  their  service  among  non- 
Christian  races,  and  it  is  almost  certain  that  many 
times  the  amount  it  costs  to  support  them  would  soon 
be  added  to  the  war  budgets  of  the  world. 

Credit  must  be  given  to  missions  for  the  establish- 
ment of  industrial  training  in  many  fields.  The  Basel 
Mission  has  a  notable  record  in  the  industrial  and  tech- 
nical training  of  its  converts.  In  some  prominent  mis- 
sion fields  the  industrial  training  has  assumed  such 
proportions  that  it  has  been  found  necessary  to  commit 
it  to  the  administration  of  business  corporations  estab- 
lished under  the  direction  and  supervision  of  the  friends 
of  missions  in  "Western  lands.  An  example  is  the 
"Uganda  Company,  Limited,"  organized  in  1903,  and 
which  now  pays  a  moderate  dividend,  the  object  of  the 
enterprise  being  to  assume  the  business  industries  which 
before  that  date  had  been  conducted  by  the  Church 
Missionary  Society  in  the  Uganda  Protectorate.  The 
"  East  African  Industries,  Limited,"  is  a  similar  com- 
pany, organized  in  1906,  on  the  East  Coast.  In  New 
Guinea  we  find  a  like  enterprise,  entitled,  "Papuan 
Industries,  Limited,"  the  object  of  which  is  to  facilitate 
the  growth  and  prosperity  of  the  industrial  efforts  pre- 
viously organized  by  the  London  Missionary  Society. 
The  company  is  now  engaged  in  the  cultivation  of 
plantations  producing  cocoanut,  rubber,  cocoa,  coffee, 
and  cotton,  and  in  the  lumber  trade,  which  is  a  valu- 
able business  in  New  Guinea.  The  "  Scottish  Mission 
Industries  Company  "  has  been  incorporated,  to  assume 
the  management  of  business  interests  in  India  which 
have  quite  outgrown  the  initiative  of  the  United  Free 
Church  of  Scotland.    Within  recent  years  a  group  of 


104  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

Industrial  Missions  has  sprung  up,  as  the  Zambesi  In- 
dustrial Mission,  the  Nyasa  Industrial  Mission,  and  the 
Baptist  Industrial  Mission  of  Scotland,  all  of  which 
have  their  field  of  operation  in  British  Central  Africa. 
Industrial  features  have  been  made  a  specialty  also  by 
the  East  Coast  Mission  of  the  English  Friends,  on  the 
island  of  Pemba,  and  by  a  similar  enterprise  conducted 
by  the  American  Friends  in  British  East  Africa,  among 
the  Kavirondo  people.  The  General  Synod  of  the 
Lutheran  Church  has  an  extensive  industrial  plant  on 
the  West  Coast.  Other  enterprises  of  a  like  nature 
might  be  referred  to,  mostly  in  various  localities  of 
Africa.  The  American  Methodist  Missions  in  Masho- 
naland,  Rhodesia,  under  the  supervision  of  Bishop 
Hartzell,  and  those  of  the  American  Board  in  the  same 
region,  are  worthy  of  note.  The  benefits  of  industrial 
training  among  uncivilized  races  can  hardly  be  chal- 
lenged. A  large  and  interesting  field  of  missionary 
operations  spreads  out  before  us  in  this  connection,  the 
extent  and  the  moral,  as  well  as  commercial,  significance 
of  which  are  but  little  known. 

The  influence  of  missions  has  been  also  helpful  to 
commerce  by  reason  of  the  dignity  it  has  given  to 
labour,  and  the  emphasis  which  it  has  laid  upon  the 
rewards  of  frugality  and  thrift.  Christianity  has  in- 
fused a  conscience  into  the  spirit  of  common  labour, 
and  has  imparted  a  certain  sacredness  to  the  ordinary 
duties  of  life.  The  early  Christian  missionaries  of 
Europe  were  the  pioneers  of  industry,  as  well  as  of 
religion.  It  was  they  who  introduced  the  ideal  of 
peaceful  and  industrious  toil,  in  settled  homes,  as  an 
offset  to  the  wild  life  of  adventure  and  brigandage 
which  was  the  ambition  of  early  barbarism.     Monta- 


Commerce  and  Missions  105 

lembert,  in  his  "  Monks  of  the  West,"  declares  that  the 
"  ensign  and  emblazonry  of  the  entire  history  of  the 
monks  during  those  early  ages  was, '  Cruce  et  Aratro.'  " 
In  the  same  way,  in  the  environment  of  modern  sav- 
agery, missions  have  studiously  striven  to  ennoble 
honest  toil,  and  to  deliver  it  from  the  contempt  which, 
according  to  the  notions  of  untamed  tribes,  seemed  to 
be  attached  to  it.  They  have  steadily  sought  to  be 
"  the  moral  regenerator  of  labour,  wherever  it  is,  and 
its  moral  founder,  wherever  it  is  not." 

A  glance  at  missions  in  the  South  Seas  and  the 
African  Continent  will  yield  telling  illustrations  of 
this.  War,  feasting,  hilarity,  and  idleness  were  magic 
words  with  the  average  native  early  in  the  last  cen- 
tury, but  the  first  lesson  of  the  missionary  was  an  in- 
spiration to  better  things.  It  is  not  too  much  to  say 
that  the  industrial  results  of  missions  in  the  South 
Pacific  may  take  rank  as  one  of  the  most  unique  social 
and  economic  transformations  that  the  world  has  ever 
witnessed.  The  whole  current  and  trend  of  native 
ideals  have  been  changed,  and  so  it  may  be  said  that 
the  African  has  learned  the  very  alphabet  of  frugality, 
thrift,  and  settled  industry  from  Christian  missions. 
The  story  of  Lovedale  in  South  Africa,  where  that 
magnificent  institution  of  the  United  Free  Church  of 
Scotland,  presided  over  so  many  years  by  the  late 
Dr.  James  Stewart,  is  situated,  is  a  veritable  romance 
of  missionary  achievement.  No  one  in  the  home 
churches  can  realize,  and  the  missionaries  themselves 
hardly  appreciate,  the  immense  social  changes  in  the 
direction  of  orderly  and  useful  living,  which  have  been 
inaugurated  in  hundreds  of  African  communities.  The 
warrior  has  been  turned  into  the  modern  plowman,  and 


106  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

his  idle  hands  have  been  taught  to  use  modern  tools  of 
precision.  Plows  which,  in  the  dramatic  language  of 
a  native  admirer,  are  said  to  "do  the  work  of  ten 
wives,"  have  broken  furrows  of  civilization  in  African 
society.  One  of  the  triumphs  of  missions  in  Africa 
may  be  said  to  be  the  conversion  of  the  native  "  from 
the  condition  of  a  loafing  savage  to  that  of  a  labourer." 
Industry,  let  it  be  noted,  is  not  the  natural  bent  of  an 
African's  desire.  His  ideal  is  summed  up  in  idleness, 
questionable  amusement,  and  war.  It  becomes,  there- 
fore, no  common  victory  to  turn  him  into  an  economic 
producer,  and  make  him  an  honest  toiler  among  his 
fellows. 

In  ways  both  direct  and  indirect  missions  may  be 
said  to  have  commended  in  many  fields  new  standards 
of  commercial  integrity.  They  have  wrought  decisive 
changes  in  the  ancient  heathen  conceptions  of  wealth 
by  attaching  moral  ideas  of  stewardship  to  riches. 
They  have  everywhere  sought  to  exemplify  and  ac- 
centuate simple,  straightforward  honesty  as  the  best 
commercial  policy.  The  missionary  the  world  over  is, 
with  hardly  an  exception,  recognized  and  acknowledged 
to  be  absolutely  trustworthy,  and  this  reputation  for 
honesty  has  become  identified  in  large  measure  with 
Christian  converts.  It  has  been  made  a  study  in  some 
mission  fields  to  commend  Christianity  by  means  of 
trade  based  on  Christian  principles.  Among  primitive 
races  missionaries  have  in  some  localities  experimentally 
introduced  an  entirely  new  system  of  barter  and  trade. 
In  India  one  of  the  lamentable  features  of  the  financial 
status  of  natives  is  an  almost  universal  condition  of  debt, 
with  a  proneness  to  incur  it.  Every  one  seems  to  like 
to  live  on  credit,  and  the  result  in  time  brings  distress, 


Commerce  and  Missions  107 

and  often  disaster.  The  mission  literature  of  India  has 
dealt  strenuously  with  this  subject,  advocating  the  wiser 
method  of  avoiding  debt  and  restraining  false  pride, 
and  thus  relieving  the  people  and  their  posterity  from 
heavy  burdens.  In  this  sphere  of  business  morals,  and 
in  the  advocacy  of  strict  integrity,  missions  have  found 
an  opportunity  of  ministering  to  the  well-being  of  so- 
ciety, which  they  have  not  failed  to  improve. 

It  may  be  asked,  Is  there  any  clear  evidence  that 
missions  have  aided  in  the  development  of  trade  and 
commerce  with  the  outer  world  ?  It  is,  of  course,  con- 
ceded that  missions  were  not  established  for  the  purpose 
of  promoting  trade.  No  missionary  is  sent  out  as  an 
emissary  of  commerce,  or  as  the  travelling  agent  or 
drummer  of  the  merchant,  nor  is  it  fit  or  becoming 
that  he  should  give  his  direct  attention  to  this  special 
line  of  service.  It  would  be  impossible  for  him  to  do 
so  without  doing  injustice  to  the  peculiar  sacredness 
of  his  calling,  and  ignoring,  to  his  own  discredit,  the 
higher  responsibilities  of  his  office.  Whatever  missions 
may  accomplish  in  this  sphere  must  therefore  be  re- 
garded as  manifestly  a  matter  of  indirection.  It  is  not 
claimed  that  this  indirect  service  to  commerce  is  a  very 
conspicuous  or  assertive  function  of  missions.  It  may 
be  looked  upon  by  some  as  rather  negative,  and  at  times 
hardly  discoverable  in  its  action,  yet  it  can  be  traced, 
and  a  discerning  student  can  discover  it.  It  has  even 
been  vouched  for  by  some  distinguished  anthropological 
and  economic  students  in  Europe,  who  have  advocated 
government  support  of  missions  among  nature-peoples, 
in  the  interests  of  civilization  and  commerce.  Among 
diplomats  and  government  officials,  moreover,  there  are 
signs  of  a  hearty  appreciation  of  the  commercial  bene- 


108  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

fits  of  missions.  A  British  consul  in  China,  in  dealing 
with  this  matter,  observed  in  his  report :  "  How  far 
the  policy  of  opening  mission  stations  in  remote  parts 
of  the  province  may  be  prudent  is  an  open  question,  Mit 
undoubtedly  our  commercial  interests  are  advanced  by 
the  presence  of  missionaries  in  districts  never  yet  visited 
by  merchants."  The  late  Charles  Denby,  for  many 
years  our  ambassador  to  China,  has  expressed  his  con- 
viction that  the  missionary  has  exerted  a  notable  influ- 
ence in  promoting  trade. 

"We  may  not  be  able  to  trace  the  commercial  fruitage 
of  missions  in  the  case  of  great  Asiatic  nations  as  dis- 
tinctly as  we  have  found  it  possible  to  do  in  connection 
with  primitive  races  that  have  struggled  out  of  bar- 
barism under  the  tutelage  and  personal  supervision  of 
the  missionary,  yet  an  underlying  connection  can  surely 
be  established,  according  to  the  testimony  of  those  who 
have  had  the  best  opportunity  for  observation.  It  is 
difficult  to  gauge  just  that  percentage  of  stimulus  which 
has  been  given  to  the  now  awakened  empire  of  China  by 
the  ministry  of  missionaries,  yet  it  is  certain  that  much 
of  the  dissemination  of  modern  knowledge  throughout 
the  Far  East  has  been  due  to  missionary  enterprise, 
and,  moreover,  the  services  of  Morrison,  Gutzlaff, 
Bridgman,  Parker,  Williams  and  Martin,  in  the  ne- 
gotiation of  Chinese  treaties,  and  their  personal  influ- 
ence over  men  of  affairs  in  China,  have  promoted  the 
interests  of  commerce,  as  well  as  those  of  international 
amity. 

The  testimony  of  men  who  have  lived  or  visited  and 
journeyed  in  the  East  may  be  quoted  in  this  connection. 
Sir  Chentung  Liang  Cheng,  a  former  Chinese  Minister 
to  the  United  States,  writes  that  "  the  missionaries  have 


Commerce  and  Missions  109 

penetrated  far  into  the  heart  of  the  country,  and  have 
invariably  been  the  frontiersmen  for  trade  and  com- 
merce." The  late  Mr.  Denby,  who  has  been  already 
quoted,  has  stated  that  the  fact  that  "  commerce  fol- 
lows the  missionary  has  been  indubitably  proved  in 
China."  The  Honourable  F.  S.  Stratton,  formerly 
Collector  of  the  Port  of  San  Francisco,  on  his  return 
from  a  journey  of  three  months  in  China,  Japan,  and 
the  Philippines,  declared  that,  "commercially  speak- 
ing, the  missionaries  are  the  advance  agents  for  Ameri- 
can commercial  enterprises,  and  if  business  men  only 
understood  this  matter,  they  would  assist  rather  than 
discourage  evangelistic  work  in  the  East."  During  a 
visit  of  Bishop  E.  R.  Hendrix  to  China,  he  met  a 
wealthy  English  merchant  in  Shanghai,  whose  convic- 
tions on  this  subject  were  pronounced,  and  clearly  ex- 
pressed. The  Bishop  quotes  him  as  saying :  "  We  find 
that  our  very  commerce  in  China  is  based  upon  the 
missionary.  He  precedes  us  into  the  interior,  and  be- 
comes the  means  of  our  communications  with  the 
natives."  A  correspondent  of  the  London  Standard 
has  written  :  "  In  almost  every  instance  of  new  trade 
centres,  new  settlements  and  ports,  being  opened  in  the 
Far  East,  the  missionary  pioneer  has  been  the  first 
student  and  interpreter,  geologist,  astronomer,  historian, 
and  schoolmaster,  and  his  example  and  instruction  have 
first  aroused  the  desire  for  those  commercial  wares  of 
ours  which  subsequently  drew  forth  the  traders."  In 
the  initial  attempts  to  build  railways  in  China  it  was 
found  comparatively  easy  to  do  this  if  the  route  had 
been  previously  occupied  by  mission  stations,  but  that 
there  was  prompt  trouble  if  the  attempt  was  made 
where  no  missionary  influence  had  been  exerted.     The 


1 1  o  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

Rev.  AV.  A.  Cornaby,  for  many  years  a  resident  mis- 
sionary  in  China,  is  quoted  as  saying  :  "  The  opening  of 
China  was  desirable  first  of  all  in  the  interests  of  the 
kingdom  of  God,  and  then  in  the  interests  of  commerce  ; 
but  the  missionary  must  precede  the  trader,  and  com- 
merce must  be  on  Christian  lines."  These  carefully 
formed  opinions  of  men  of  intelligence  and  character 
might  be  multiplied,  and  they  are  full  of  significance,  in 
view  of  the  rapid  and  enormous  extension  of  commerce 
in  the  Far  East  during  recent  years. 

It  will  perhaps  be  a  surprise  to  some  that  the  port  of 
Hong  Kong,  until  recently,  held  the  first  place  in  the 
world  for  the  magnitude  of  its  shipping,  and  is  still 
only  slightly  below  that  rank,  and  that  the  trade  of 
Shanghai,  another  important  port  of  entry,  according 
to  the  statistics  of  1907,  was  about  equal  to  that  of 
Boston,  Massachusetts,  the  second  port  of  the  United 
States.  The  total  of  foreign  trade  imports  and  exports 
in  China  in  1903  was  about  $346,000,000,  being  almost 
exactly  double  what  it  was  ten  years  before  that  date, 
and  it  has  increased  since  that  time  b}r  over  two  hun- 
dred million  dollars,  being,  as  reported  in  the  "  States- 
man's Year  Book  "  of  1912,  equivalent  to  $552,802,543. 
Of  this  amount  about  thirty-eight  million  dollars  be- 
longed to  the  United  States.  The  exports  of  the  United 
States  to  Asiatic  countries  in  1903  were  valued  at 
$58,359,016,  while  in  the  year  ending  June  30,  1905, 
they  represent  the  surprising  advance  to  a  valuation  of 
$127,637,800,  chiefly  owing  to  the  large  increase  in  our 
exports  to  Japan.  The  figures  for  1907-1908  indicate 
that  this  rapid  advance  has  not  been  sustained,  and  the 
amount  was  then  given  as  $101,784,832.  These  are  re- 
markable figures,  but  who  can  estimate  what  they  will 


Commerce  and  Missions  1 1 1 

be  now  that  China  has  inaugurated  the  telephone,  and, 
with  modern  facilities  for  transportation  and  communi- 
cation, is  beginning  to  do  business,  in  the  spirit  of 
modern  enterprise,  with  the  rest  of  the  world  ?  The 
latest  annual  returns  of  the  international  commerce  of 
the  world,  as  reported  for  1912  by  the  United  States 
Bureau  of  Foreign  and  Domestic  Commerce,  have  now 
reached  the  astonishing  sum  of  $35,000,000,000,  which 
is  $4,000,000,000  in  advance  of  1910,  and  of  this  amount 
a  not  inconsiderable  share  already  belongs  to  the  lands 
where  missions  are  conducted. 

Even  in  the  case  of  Japan,  while  the  Japanese  them- 
selves may  justly  claim  a  maximum  share  of  the  credit 
of  their  national  renaissance,  and  their  phenomenal 
commercial  development,  yet  it  should  not  be  forgot- 
ten that  the  opening  of  Japan  was  a  memorable  achieve- 
ment of  American  diplomacy,  and  that  candour  requires 
that  a  certain  meed  of  credit  in  this  connection  belongs 
to  the  guiding  counsels,  the  sympathetic  aid,  and  the 
educational  impetus,  of  missions.  Japanese  prospect- 
ing into  the  realms  of  Western  civilization  has  been — at 
least  in  its  early  stages — largely  under  missionary  in- 
spiration and  guidance,  and  a  goodly  number  of  her 
best  men  in  State  and  Church  alike  are  the  products  of 
missions ;  yet  not  much  more  than  half  a  century  ago 
international  trade  was  virtually  prohibited  in  Japan, 
and  all  contact  with  foreigners  was  under  rigorous  re- 
strictions. The  influence  of  missions  in  their  relation  to 
the  great  changes  which  have  come  is  not  always  on 
the  surface,  nor  do  we  desire  to  make  it  unduly 
prominent ;  yet  no  wise  economic  interpretation  of  his- 
tory can  safely  ignore  the  influence  of  such  educational, 
moral,  religious,  and  generally  vivifying  forces  as  are 


1 1 2  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

introduced  by  modern  missions.  These  statements  cer- 
tainly apply  in  a  marked  degree  to  the  commercial 
progress  of  Korea.  Trade  returns  there,  as  we  have 
noted  in  so  many  instances,  have  increased  in  a  kind  of 
rhythmic  accord  with  mission  progress.  From  1895  to 
1903  Korean  commerce  in  the  open  ports  doubled  itself, 
having  expanded  from  a  valuation  of  about  six  million 
dollars  to  a  total  of  about  fourteen  million  dollars,  and 
in  the  trade  reports  of  1907  the  total  figures  are  about 
twenty-nine  million  dollars,  and  of  this  amount  about 
twenty-one  million  dollars  are  imports. 

An  increase  of  one  thousand  per  cent,  in  the  trade  of 
India  during  the  Victorian  Era  tells  the  story  of 
modern  commercial  progress  in  the  great  peninsula — a 
truly  wonderful  exhibit  of  the  potentialities  of  trade  in 
Asia.  In  the  Turkish  Empire,  under  the  stimulus  of 
monumental  changes  and  revolutionary  progress,  we 
have  the  promise  of  another  commercial  opening, 
which,  according  to  competent  observers,  will  be  due 
in  no  slight  measure  to  the  work  of  American  missions. 
Consul-General  Dickinson  has  stated  his  conviction  that 
even  the  material  returns  of  American  mission  work  in 
Turkey  have  justified  in  large  measure  the  outlay. 
"From  every  standpoint,"  he  remarks,  to  quote  his 
exact  words,  "  I  do  not  see  how  the  American  missions 
in  Turkey,  as  they  are  at  present  conducted,  can  fail  to 
be  of  distinct  advantage  to  the  commerce  and  influence 
of  the  United  States."  In  the  Syrian  Protestant  Col- 
lege at  Beirut,  a  "  School  of  Commerce "  has  been 
established  as  a  department  of  the  curriculum,  with  a 
view  to  training  educated  young  men  for  skilled  serv- 
ice in  a  commercial  career.  Commercial  education  has 
also  been  made  part  of  the  curriculum  at  St,  John's 


Commerce  and  Missions  1 13 

College,  Agra,  India,  where  shorthand,  typewriting, 
bookkeeping,  and  other  accomplishments  of  practical 
value  are  taught.  Other  schools  of  the  same  character 
might  be  mentioned.  Model  stores,  also,  have  been 
opened  in  some  of  the  African  missions,  and  among  the 
Indians  of  South  America,  where  trade  is  conducted  in 
a  way  to  exemplify  strict  business  methods,  as  well  as 
to  inculcate  the  essential  virtue  of  honesty.  Bishop 
Selwyn,  as  far  back  as  1857,  during  his  visits  to  some 
of  the  Melanesian  Islands,  introduced  the  custom  of 
buying  yams  by  weight,  to  the  delight  of  the  natives, 
who  were  greatly  impressed  with  the  strict  and  im- 
partial justice  of  the  method.  The  Basel  missionaries 
in  Kamerun  have  made  it  a  part  of  their  service 
patiently  to  impress  the  native  with  the  meaning  and 
binding  force  of  a  contract,  and  to  secure,  if  possible, 
his  conscientious  recognition  of  such  a  self-imposed 
obligation.  Thus  in  various  ways  the  ethics  of  com- 
mercial transactions  are  being  taught. 

That  a  grave  economic  problem  is  involved  in  the 
rapid  advance  of  foreign  commerce  among  native  races 
is  not  to  be  denied,  and  the  resultant  depression  of 
native  industries  would  seem  to  call  for  some  kindly 
effort  to  adjust  this  economic  problem  so  that  threatened 
disaster  and  suffering  may  be  mitigated  as  far  as  pos- 
sible. Any  adjustment  of  this  kind  may  cost  much, 
and  may  even  seem  in  some  instances  inevitably  to 
spell  ruin  to  native  arts  and  industries.  The  same 
difficulties  have  often  had  to  be  met  in  the  annals  of 
the  industrial  world,  and  it  is  to  be  hoped  that  in  time 
these  difficulties  may  be  overcome,  and  society  will  ad- 
just itself  to  a  new  industrial  era.  In  the  meantime, 
does  not  this  depression,  involving  even  in  some  cases 


1 14  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

the  extinction  of  native  industries  by  the  inroads  of 
foreign  commerce,  place  a  weighty  obligation  upon  the 
philanthropic  and  humane  agencies  of  the  Christian 
world  to  make  some  effort  to  provide  a  comprehensive 
and  practical  technical  training,  to  enable  the  native 
agencies  to  meet  successfully  the  exigencies  of  this  new 
and  desperate  trade  situation  ?  An  Indian  missionary, 
in  referring  to  the  economic  ascendancy  of  England  in 
India,  suggestively  remarks  :  "  This  is  a  fine  thing  for 
English  industry,  but  what  does  it  mean  for  Indian 
industry?  We  cannot  turn  back  the  tide  of  the  in- 
evitable, but  we  can  mix  with  that  tide  the  healing 
streams  of  the  Gospel,  and  our  own  human  sympathy. 
Let  us  build  as  we  break.  The  Christian  business  man 
ought  to  feel  that  wherever  he  sends  his  goods  and 
makes  his  profit,  there  he  must  with  equal  urgency 
send  his  Gospel.  My  deepest  conviction  is  that  the 
only  power  which  can  help  the  people  of  India  to  build 
up  a  new  social  and  industrial  fabric  out  of  the  present 
ruin  is  the  power  of  Jesus  Christ  creating  in  them  a 
new  self-respect,  and  new  impulses  in  new  directions. 
In  the  Gospel  we  hold  that  which  we  can  give  to 
other  nations,  which  will  make  them  great  and  glorious, 
without  impoverishing  ourselves.  Let  every  Christian 
Englishman  do  his  duty  by  the  countries  he  trades  with." 
In  a  country  like  Japan  the  adjustment  above  re- 
ferred to  may  be  accomplished  with  ease,  and  much 
more  rapidly  than,  for  example,  in  a  land  like  China. 
It  is  already  progressing  in  Japan  at  a  pace  which  is 
altogether  unexampled.  "Twenty-two  years  ago," 
wrote  Dr.  J.  II.  DeForest  in  1896,  "when  I  first  saw 
the  great  commercial  centre  of  the  empire,  Osaka, 
where  seven-tenths  of  all  the  wealth  of  Japan  was 


Commerce  and  Missions  1 1 5 

said  to  be  gathered,  there  were  only  two  tall  brick 
chimneys  visible — those  of  the  Mint  and  of  a  paper- 
mill.  Now  the  city  is  surrounded  by  a  dozen  miles  of 
brick  and  iron  chimneys,  with  over  three  thousand 
factories.  Everywhere  manufactures,  commercial  com- 
panies, railroads,  foreign  commerce,  banks,  insurance, 
have  leaped  forward  with  immense  strides,  especially 
since  the  war  [with  China]."  Railways  are  still  pro- 
jected by  the  score,  a  merchant  marine  of  magnificent 
proportions  is  already  launched,  and  modern  facilities  of 
all  kinds  are  being  readily  and  rapidly  adopted.  The 
industrial  expansion  of  Japan  is  therefore  phenomenal. 

The  introduction  of  improved  agricultural  imple- 
ments in  vast  hitherto  uncultivated  regions  of  the 
earth  may  be  traced  directly  to  the  missionary,  in 
many  instances.  It  was  Dr.  Moffat  who  taught  the 
Kaffirs  the  value  of  irrigation,  and  it  was  the  clumsy 
hoe  which  was  the  most  effective  instrument  of  the 
African  native,  until  the  plow  was  thrust  into  the  soil 
by  an  American  missionary.  Previous  to  that  the 
burden  of  agricultural  cultivation  rested  largely  upon 
the  women.  Huge  oxen  passed  an  almost  useless  ex- 
istence so  far  as  any  agricultural  or  transport  service 
was  concerned.  Since  the  introduction  of  plows  there 
have  been  thousands — especially  those  of  American 
manufacture — imported  for  use  in  South  Africa. 

Not  long  ago  the  Rev.  D.  Z.  Sheffield  invented  and 
perfected  a  Chinese  typewriter,  with  a  type-wheel 
providing  four  thousand  available  characters  for  use. 
Although  the  language  contains  over  forty  thousand 
distinct  characters,  yet  for  typewriting  purposes  it  has 
been  found  that  they  may  be  reduced  to  about  four 
thousand.     In  his  hours  of  recreation  from  the  duties 


1 1 6  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

of  his  missionary  service  at  Peking,  Dr.  Sheffield  has 
quietly  wrought  out  and  adjusted  to  Chinese  uses  this 
invaluable  invention  of  modern  commerce.  We  may 
credit  also  Mr.  F.  D.  Phinney,  superintendent  of  the 
Baptist  Mission  Press  at  Rangoon,  with  the  construc- 
tion of  a  Burmese  typewriter.  It  was  the  Rev.  John 
Williams  who  built  the  Messenger  of  Peace,  a  ship  of 
about  sixty  tons  burden,  and  taught  the  natives  of  Raro- 
tonga  the  art  of  ship-building ;  and  these  same  natives 
became  there  and  elsewhere  among  the  Pacific  Island- 
ers the  builders  of  their  own  ships,  of  far  larger  dimen- 
sions than  any  previously  constructed.  Carey  imported 
the  first  steam-engine  into  India  for  his  paper-mill. 
Dr.  Sheldon  Jackson  was  instrumental  in  introducing 
reindeer  into  Alaska,  and  Dr.  Grenfell  has  tried  the 
same  experiment  in  Labrador.  The  Rev.  W.  N".  Brew- 
ster imported  machinery  into  China  for  the  extraction 
of  the  juice  from  sugar-cane,  as  he  had  observed  that 
the  stone  mills  used  in  that  great  sugar-growing  region 
worked  so  imperfectly  that  twenty  per  cent,  of  the  best 
juice  was  left  in  the  cane,  and  burned  up.  "  Hosts  of 
chiefs  and  slaves  are  crowding  my  smithy,"  wrote 
Mackay  of  Uganda,  in  1879.  They  were  filled  with 
wonder  at  the  turning-lathe,  and  various  mechanical 
devices.  The  first  electric  plant  in  Mid  Africa  was 
operated  under  the  supervision  of  Dr.  Laws,  of  the 
Livingstonia  Mission. 

We  can  follow  the  historic  footsteps  of  missions  over 
distant  continents  into  comparatively  unknown  regions, 
and  find  that,  with  hardly  an  exception,  the  pathway 
of  commerce  has  been  opened  where  the  missionary 
has  first  trod.  An  outcome  so  universal  can  hardly  be  a 
mere  coincidence.     It  suggests  beyond  cavil  that  Divine 


Commerce  and  Missions  117 

Providence  has  linked  by  deep  undercurrents  of  influ- 
ence the  material  progress  and  the  commercial  expan- 
sion of  the  world  with  the  advance  of  His  beneficent 
kingdom  among  the  races  of  mankind.  Does  not  this 
study  of  the  political  and  commercial  value  of  missions 
emphasize  the  fact  that  missions,  under  proper  auspices, 
and  with  suitable  methods,  should  be  awarded  a  promi- 
nent place  in  the  activities  of  the  modern  world  ?  Is 
not  this  especially  true  in  connection  with  any  wise  and 
effective  policy  of  national  expansion  which  has  its  roots 
in  Christendom?  If  expansion  is  on  military  lines 
alone,  or  is  based  upon  exclusively  political  or  economic 
designs,  or  is  pushed  with  a  view  simply  to  commercial 
gains,  it  must  eventually  prove  to  be  a  short-sighted 
and  defective  policy.  It  will  lack  the  element  which 
may  fairly  be  regarded  as  essential  to  the  highest  con- 
ception and  the  most  permanent  value  of  the  imperial- 
istic ideal.  The  words  of  the  late  Dr.  James  Stewart, 
the  founder  of  Lovedale  Institution  in  South  Africa, 
in  his  address  as  Moderator  of  the  Free  Church  of  Scot- 
land, seem  fully  justified.  He  remarked  :  "  The  Chris- 
tian Church  is  not  aware  of  the  magnitude  of  the  change 
that  is  going  on  all  over  the  world  at  the  present  time 
where  missionary  effort  exists.  It  is  exactly  to-day  as 
in  the  early  days  of  Christianity.  The  statesmen  of 
Rome,  the  thinkers  and  philosophers  and  busy  men  of 
those  days,  took  almost  no  notice  of  the  new  power 
that  had  begun  its  work  in  the  world.  One  or  two  of 
them  wrote  letters  to  the  emperors  about  this  new  and 
singular  sect  of  whom  they  had  heard,  but  serious  at- 
tention, save  that  of  persecution,  they  never  thought 
of  bestowing  on  the  new  movement;  and  they  little 
dreamed  of  what  it  would  one  day  accomplish." 


Missions  in  China:  A  Defense  and  an 
Appreciation 


From  all  quarters,  from  missionaries  and  from  Chinese  Christians  alike, 
there  comes  the  testimony  that  the  thing  which  China  needs  to-day  beyond 
all  else  is  moral  power.  She  has  possessed  for  ages  a  noble  system  of  mo- 
rality of  which  she  is  justly  proud,  but  the  general  complaint  is  that  there 
is  no  power  to  realize  it,  and  no  inner  impulse  of  life  driving  her  beyond 
it  in  quest  of  higher  ideals  and  the  power  to  realize  them.  We  have  here 
exemplified  on  the  vast  scale,  in  a  great  and  ancient  civilization,  the  same 
principle  which  Warneck  discovers  in  the  experience  of  the  obscure  nature 
peoples  among  whom  he  has  laboured,  that  in  the  long  run  the  impelling 
and  creative  power  in  morality  is  found  only  in  religion,  that  the  powers 
of  moral  life  in  nations  depend  on  the  depth  and  breadth  and  purity  of 
men's  convictions  as  to  the  living  God.     .     .     . 

In  general,  the  struggle  of  Christianity  in  China  to-day  seems  not  to  be 
with  any  very  earnest  and  formidable  religious  thought  which  represents 
a  serious  attempt  to  grapple  with  the  mysteries  of  life  and  death,  but  the 
resisting  forces  appear  to  be  rather  the  universal  resisting  forces  of  moral 
laxity  and  religious  indifference,  reinforced  by  national  pride  in  the  past, 
and  the  lawful  and  profound  resentment  which  China  feels  on  account  of 
her  treatment  by  the  nations  of  Christendom.  Slowly  but  surely  this  re- 
sistance has  been  yielding  to  the  power  of  the  Gospel,  and  all  over  the 
vast  empire  Christian  churches  have  been  growing  up,  and  taking  an 
ever  firmer  hold  upon  the  people.  On  the  bare  ground  of  what  has  al- 
ready been  done  the  Church  has  great  reason  for  thankfulness  and  encour- 
agement. But  has  she  not  still  more  abounding  reason  for  gratitude  as 
she  realizes  the  vast  importance  of  this  work  as  preparatory  for  what  lies 
immediately  before  her  ?  She  has  won  all  over  the  empire  points  of 
vantage  and  bases  of  operation  for  one  of  the  greatest  spiritual  conflicts 
of  human  history.  Twenty  years  ago  no  human  being  could  have  im- 
agined the  situation  in  China  to-day. 

••  The  Missionary  Message," 
Report  of  Commission  IV,  Edinburgh  Conference. 


MISSIONS  IN  CHINA* 

A  Defense  and  an  Appreciation 

THE  missionary  in  China  has  suddenly  arrested 
the  vision  of  Christendom,  and  is  engaging 
public  attention  with  an  interest  which  is  al- 
most tragic.2  He  has  become  the  centre  of  a  group  of 
questions  and  problems  concerning  which  the  average 
man  has  little  information,  and  upon  which  he  is  looking 
for  clear  and  satisfying  light.  "What  is  the  legal  status 
of  the  missionary  ;  why  is  he  in  such  dire  peril ;  what  re- 
sponsibility rests  upon  him  in  connection  with  the  amaz- 
ing Boxer  upheaval  in  the  empire ;  why  did  he  go  to 
China ;  what  has  he  accomplished ;  has  he  any  right  to 
live  there,  and  what  is  to  be  done  with  him  in  the  fu- 
ture ?  To  the  ordinary  observer  of  events  in  the  Far 
East,  the  whole  question  of  missions  has  become  one  of 
much  perplexity.  In  the  lurid  light  of  such  an  un- 
precedented spectacle  as  the  Boxer  agitation,  and  under 
the  influence  of  misapprehension,  men  say  impulsively 
to  themselves :  "  If  missions  lead  to  this,  is  it  worth 
while  to  prosecute  them  ?  " 

To  the  statesman  and  diplomat,  in  their  worried 
hours,  unless  they  are  gifted  with  remarkable  poise, 

1  American  Monthly  Review  of  Reviews,  September,  1900. 

8  This  article  on  Missions  in  China  was  originally  written  in  1900, 
at  the  time  of  the  Boxer  uprising,  but  has  now  been  revised  to  date 
in  its  statistics. 

121 


122  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

insight,  self-restraint,  and  breadth  of  historic  vision, 
the  temptation  is  strong  hastily  to  place  a  burden  of 
responsibility  upon  the  missionary  enterprise  that  does 
not  properly  belong  to  it.  Many  good  people  who  feel 
sure  that  missions  in  the  name  of  Christ  have  had,  and 
will  continue  to  have,  a  defensible  and  even  indisputable 
function  in  human  history,  are  yet,  in  the  face  of  the 
present  startling  developments,  not  able  to  formulate 
definitely  the  grounds  of  their  convictions  in  a  way  to 
convince  an  objector,  even  if  satisfactory  to  themselves. 
Meanwhile,  the  irrepressible  critics  of  the  enterprise 
are  seizing  the  opportunity  to  depreciate  the  work  of 
missions  in  general,  and  in  particular  to  administer  a 
volume  of  patronizing  scolding  to  the  missionary  in 
China.  The  state  of  the  public  mind  in  the  present  crisis 
is  so  alert  and  impressionable  that  confident  and  plausi- 
ble misstatements  gain  a  hearing  which  otherwise  would 
not  be  given  them. 

There  is  much  similarity  in  the  subject-matter  and 
general  trend  of  these  critical  thrusts ;  and  it  will 
answer  our  purpose  if  we  select  a  few  of  the  more  promi- 
nent arguments  and  deal  with  them  seriatim,. 

It  is  usually  intimated,  in  the  form  of  an  invidious 
comparison,  that  the  consul,  the  trader,  and  the  diplomat, 
having  won  their  way  and  established  their  position, 
are  acquiesced  in  by  the  Chinese  with  a  measure  of 
tolerance,  but  that  the  missionary,  on  the  contrary,  is  a 
hopeless  outcast,  who  has  "  not  even  reached  the  rank 
of  a  necessary  evil."  This  is  an  amazing  assertion, 
indeed,  when  we  note  the  fact  that  missionaries  were 
in  China,  under  the  auspices  of  the  Koman  Catholic 
Church,  over  five  hundred  years  ago.  There  was  an 
Archbishop  of  Peking  in  Marco  Polo's  day,  and  he 


Missions  in  China  123 

speaks  of  Christians  as  occupying  no  mean  position  in 
the  thirteenth  century.  As  for  the  date  of  the  entrance 
of  the  Nestorian  Christians,  it  seems  more  than  likely 
that  it  was  as  early  as  the  beginning  of  the  sixth 
century.  Modern  evangelical  missions  began  in  the 
first  decade  of  the  nineteenth  century.  If  any  foreign 
residents,  therefore,  have  "won  their  positions"  in 
China,  they  are  the  missionaries  themselves. 

The  preaching  of  the  missionary  is  another  grievance 
which  is  apt  to  be  dwelt  upon  at  some  length  in  these 
adverse  comments.  It  is  usually  represented  that  it  is 
calculated  to  overthrow  Chinese  morality,  and  liable  to 
prove  the  destruction  of  the  State,  and  the  ruin  of 
society.  Chinese  morality  sounds  well ;  but  it  may 
safely  be  said  that,  in  all  respects  where  their  moral 
standards  are  not  in  direct  conflict  with  the  command- 
ments of  God,  they  are  fostered  and  sustained  by  mis- 
sions. It  must  be  confessed,  not  specially,  moreover, 
to  the  discredit  of  missionaries,  that  they  do  teach  that 
lying,  stealing,  licentiousness,  adultery,  and  murder  are 
wrong.  They  do  not  patronize  and  condone  infanticide, 
and  they  deprecate  slicing,  quartering,  and  torturing 
living  victims ;  nor  are  they  in  favour  of  extortion, 
bribery,  mob  violence,  and  looting.  They  know  a  better 
way  to  treat  innocent  little  girls  than  to  inflict  upon 
them  the  agonies  of  foot-binding,  and  thus  maim  them 
for  life.  Yes,  in  these  and  sundry  other  matters, 
they  venture  to  suggest  that  Chinese  practice,  at 
least,  will  bear  revision.  It  may  be  said  that  these 
things  do  not  fairly  represent  Chinese  morality.  Is 
it  not  clear,  however,  that  what  a  people  practice 
for  centuries,  regard  with  more  or  less  complacency, 
and  in  some  instances  with  popular  approval,  offers  a 


1 24  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

fair  sample  of  their  practical  morals,  although  it  may 
not  have  been  sanctioned  by  the  authority  of  Confucius  ? 

In  some  instances,  the  critic  seems  to  give  away  his 
case,  and  yield  the  main  point  of  his  contention  by 
an  acknowledgment  that  the  Chinese  care  little  for 
Christianity.  The  "  fine  certificate  of  religious  toler- 
ance "  which  Lord  Salisbury  recently  gave  to  the 
Chinese  is  quoted  approvingly  in  a  recent  anti-missionary 
article,  and  the  writer  himself  argues  that  their  objec- 
tions to  Christianity  are  not  due  to  religious  motives. 
This  is  true,  since  the  Chinese  are  not,  strictly  speaking, 
a  religious  race.  They  do  not  possess  devout  natures, 
or  cherish  strenuous  and  definite  religious  convictions. 
They  are  a  law  unto  themselves  in  morals,  and  look  to 
their  Emperor  officially,  at  stated  times,  to  go  through 
the  ritual  of  intercession  in  their  behalf.  So  far  as 
they  have  a  controlling  religious  cult,  it  consists  in  the 
worship  of  their  ancestors.  Idolatry  is  common,  gods 
abound,  and  superstitions — strange,  pervasive,  dominant 
— control  their  outward  life  and  inner  experience  to  an 
almost  incredible  extent.  It  would  not  be  improper, 
using  a  stronger  word  than  tolerance,  to  say  that  the 
average  Chinese  is  indifferent  to  Christianity  per  se. 
It  is  to  him  one  more  superstition,  which  he  can  regard 
with  unconcern.  The  contention,  therefore,  that  the 
missionary,  per  se,  is  an  object  of  loathing  simply  be- 
cause of  his  religious  teaching,  or  as  a  representative  of 
Christianity,  must  be  made  in  the  fnce  of  acknowledged 
evidence  to  the  contrary. 

Moreover,  China  has  already  assimilated  at  least  three 
strange  religions — Buddhism  and  Mohammedanism, 
both  the  result  of  missionary  propagandism,  and  Taoism, 
a  philosophical  intruder.     Christianity,  it  must  be  re- 


Missions  in  China  125 

merabered,  also,  has  been  handicapped  both  by  slander- 
ous assaults  and  by  association  with  the  foreigner.  The 
campaign  of  venomous  literature  has  been  constant, 
and  indescribably  virulent.  Government  documents, 
or  what  are  known  as  the  "Blue-books"  of  China, 
teem  with  vile  charges  ;  private  tracts  and  placards  of 
the  most  fiendish  import  have  been  allowed  free  circu- 
lation by  the  authorities ;  Chinese  gossip  has  revelled 
in  the  exploitation  of  the  horrible  customs  and  the 
dangerous  ideas  of  both  foreign  and  native  Christians. 

It  is,  then,  the  missionary,  not  as  a  religious  teacher, 
but  as  a  maligned  and  accessible  foreigner,  who  allures 
the  Chinese  mob.  His  church,  his  school,  his  converts, 
are  all  regarded  as  parts  of  his  entourage  ;  and,  unfor- 
tunately, the  converts  are  especially  attractive  as  objects 
of  attack,  because  it  is  generally  quite  safe  to  smite, 
and  slay,  and  loot  them,  in  the  absence  of  any  efficient 
protection.  The  causes  of  this  hatred  of  foreigners  are 
not  only  immemorial  antipathy,  intensified,  in  the  pres- 
ent instance,  by  the  exciting  clangour  of  lies  resounding 
throughout  the  empire.  More  specifically  and  directly, 
they  are  found  in  the  increasing  aggressiveness  of  the 
foreigner  himself,  in  pushing  trade  ;  in  developing  new 
facilities  of  communication ;  in  launching  industrial 
enterprises ;  in  intrusive  prospecting  of  the  natural 
wealth  of  the  country  ;  in  supplanting  native  resources 
and  economic  methods,  and  in  an  all-round  hustling 
scramble  after  the  spoils  of  China — in  all  of  which  he 
shows  scant  respect  for  native  predilections  and  super- 
stitions. The  unbearable  climax  of  the  whole  business, 
alarming  and  humiliating  to  the  government,  and  irri- 
tating to  the  people,  was  the  recent  political  encroach- 
ments  of  European   nations   upon   Chinese  territory. 


1 26  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

The  missionary,  through  no  fault  of  his  own,  has  been 
compromised  even  in  this,  since  it  has  not  safeguarded 
the  living  to  have  the  dead  appropriated  as  a  stock-in- 
trade  for  purposes  of  political  aggrandizement. 

It  is  the  foreigner,  then,  in  his  increasingly  menac- 
ing role,  as  the  despoiler  of  the  empire,  who  looms  up 
before  the  Chinese  imagination,  and  becomes  the  true 
and  quite  sufficient  explanation  of  the  extreme  virulence 
of  the  Boxer  outburst.  The  fact  that  the  authorities, 
instead  of  sternly  suppressing,  have  encouraged  these 
turbulent  movements,  is  an  additional  cause  of  their 
violence.  There  is  abundant  evidence  in  the  records  of 
diplomatic  intercourse  with  China  that  duplicity, 
mingled  with  the  same  unquenchable  antipathy  as  is  so 
jauntily  alleged  to  pertain  almost  exclusively  to  mis- 
sionaries, has  been  long  characteristic  of  Chinese  rela- 
tions with  the  official  representatives  of  foreign  powers. 
The  whole  diplomatic  body,  in  fact,  is  at  the  present 
moment  the  supreme  object  of  Chinese  insult  and  out- 
rage. The  attempt,  therefore,  on  the  part  of  those 
who  are  offended  by  missions  to  seize  the  occasion  and 
make  a  scapegoat  of  the  missionary  is  clearly  indefen- 
sible and  unfair  ;  although  not  in  all  instances  with  a 
deliberate  animus. 

Much  is  made,  in  these  unguarded  comments  under 
review,  of  the  alleged  thrusting  of  missionaries  into  the 
empire  under  the  shelter  of  coercive  treaties,  while  at 
the  same  time  the  Chinese  Government  is  browbeaten 
into  protecting  them  from  mob  violence.  The  idea  of 
coercion  in  this  connection  is  usually  emphasized  by 
mission  critics  in  a  sinister  sense,  as  if  the  tolerance  of 
Christianity  were  forced  upon  the  protesting  Chinese 
authorities.     There  is  reason  to  believe  that  the  clause 


Missions  in  China  1 27 

of  toleration  was  one  of  the  least  objectionable  features 
of  modern  treaties.  It  is  stated,  in  the  "  Records  of 
the  Shanghai  Missionary  Conference "  of  1877  (p. 
407),  but  without  sufficient  official  verification,  that 
the  Chinese  commissioners  themselves  favoured  the 
toleration  clauses.  None  of  these  treaties,  of  course, 
was  liked  by  the  Chinese  ;  and  every  clause,  especially 
those  referring  to  open  ports  and  trade  concessions,  was 
the  result  of  a  measure  of  diplomatic  pressure. 

To  ignore  this,  and  make  it  seem  that  the  civilized 
governments  have,  in  any  exceptional  sense,  introduced 
Christianity  and  Christian  missionaries  into  China  by 
compulsion,  is  to  give  a  misleading  impression.  They 
simply  safeguarded  interests  which  it  was  not  wise  to 
neglect.  It  is  now,  and  has  long  been,  an  indisputable 
fact  that  Christianity  is  an  officially  recognized  and 
tolerated  religion  in  China — as  much  so  as  Buddhism, 
Mohammedanism,  and  Taoism. 

The  allegation  that  China  was  coerced  into  receiving 
missionaries  is  not,  therefore,  sustained,  since,  as  before 
stated,  they  were  in  China  more  than  a  thousand  years 
before  the  modern  treaties  were  made.  Protestant 
missions,  to  be  sure,  date  from  early  in  the  nineteenth 
century  ;  but  even  they  had  established  themselves  as  a 
fixture  at  prominent  centres  before  the  treaties  to 
which  reference  is  made  were  executed.  It  is  because 
missionaries  were  already  there,  and  were  American, 
British,  French,  German,  and  other  European  citizens, 
having  legal  rights  which  any  honourable  and  con- 
siderate civilized  government  would  be  anxious  to 
protect,  that  the  clauses  guaranteeing  religious  liberty 
and  immunity  from  persecution  were  inserted  in  all 
the  treaties  with  China.     Such  clauses  have,  in  fact, 


1 28  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

been  introduced  into  other  treaties  with  almost  every 
prominent  Asiatic  government. 

To  the  credit  and  humanity  of  the  American  Govern- 
ment, the  clause  in  its  treaty  securing  religious  freedom 
extends  its  guarantee  not  only  to  American  citizens,  but 
to  the  Chinese  converts  as  well.  The  toleration  clause 
in  the  British  treaty  also  includes,  by  undoubted  im- 
plication, liberty  of  conscience  to  Chinese  converts, 
although  they  are  not  specifically  named,  as  in  the 
American.  Substantially  the  same  clause  exists  in 
treaties  with  ten  Christian  nations,  and  its  established 
interpretation  has  been  understood  to  secure  liberty  to 
Chinese  subjects  to  profess  Christianity.  This  may  all 
be  true,  and  yet  it  must  be  noted  that  any  government 
is  entitled  to  exercise  its  discretion  as  to  whether  it  is 
ever  diplomatically  wise  or  possible  to  exert  more  than 
a  friendly  influence  on  their  behalf. 

The  clause  under  consideration,  which  is  made  to 
pose  as  such  an  unwarranted  exaction  from  China,  is 
found  in  Article  29  of  the  Tientsin  Treaty  of  1858,  and 
reads  as  follows : 

"  The  principles  of  the  Christian  religion,  as  professed 
by  the  Protestant  and  Roman  Catholic  churches,  are 
recognized  as  teaching  men  to  do  good,  and  to  do  to 
others  as  they  would  have  others  do  to  them.  Here- 
after those  who  quietly  profess  and  teach  these  doc- 
trines shall  not  be  harassed  or  persecuted  on  account 
of  their  faith.  Any  person,  whether  a  citizen  of  the 
United  States  or  Chinese  convert,  who,  according  to 
these  tenets,  shall  peaceably  teach  and  practise  the 
principles  of  Christianity,  shall  in  no  case  be  interfered 
with  or  molested." 

In  another  form,  and  under  a  somewhat  different 


Missions  in  China  129 

aspect,  similar  privileges  are  inserted  in  the  subsequent 
Treaty  of  1869,  Article  8  of  which  reads : 

"  The  United  States  freely  agree  that  Chinese  subjects 
shall,  without  hindrance  on  account  of  their  nationality 
or  religion,  be  admitted  to  all  schools,  colleges,  and 
other  public  educational  institutions,  without  being 
subject  to  any  religious  or  political  test ;  and,  on  the 
other  hand,  his  Majesty  the  Emperor  of  China  agrees 
that  citizens  of  the  United  States  may  freely  establish 
and  maintain  schools  in  that  empire  in  those  places 
where  foreigners  are  permitted  by  treaty  to  reside." 

What  is  there,  in  these  simple  guarantees  of  liberty 
of  conscience  and  security  against  persecuting  violence, 
to  excite  such  excoriating  comments  as  we  find  in  some 
of  the  current  arraignments  of  missionaries  ?  Are  the 
privileges  accorded  so  offensive,  and  the  protection  from 
outrage  promised  so  humiliating,  that  it  is  not  seemly 
for  our  government  to  demand  them  ?  They  are 
simply  what  every  self-respecting  government  expects 
from  every  other  civilized  power ;  and  why  should 
they  be  sneered  at  as  an  indefensible  exaction  from 
China  ?  What  basis  do  they  afford  for  the  insinuation, 
which  is  freely  advanced,  that  the  missionary — being 
also  a  citizen — goes  into  a  kind  of  moral  eclipse  when 
he  claims  the  immunity  that  is  here  guaranteed  to 
him  ?  Moreover,  is  it  not  beside  the  mark  to  hold  up 
the  missionary  exclusively  to  contumely  in  this  con- 
nection ?  Is  not  the  government  that  has  secured  these 
guarantees  attacked  by  the  condemnatory  scorn  of  the 
critic  as  much,  if  not  more,  than  the  citizen  who  enjoys 
or  claims  their  benefit  ?  Do  not  the  Churches  of 
Christendom  sending  and  supporting  their  missionary 
representatives,  and  the  Christian  public  sentiment  that 


130  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

sustains  the  enterprise,  assume  also  a  measure  of  the 
responsibility?  Who  can  doubt,  however,  that  civi- 
lized governments,  which  have  almost  unanimously 
insisted  upon  these  guarantees,  have  acted  with  wisdom 
and  decision,  and  with  statesmanlike  insight  into  the 
necessity  of  such  specific  guarantees,  if  their  citizens 
are  to  live  at  all  in  Asiatic  countries  ? 

It  has  been  coolly  asserted  in  some  of  these  arraign- 
ments that  "  his  [the  missionary's]  presence  in  the  in- 
terior of  China  is,  in  itself,  a  violation  of  a  solemn 
compact."  Upon  what  is  this  bold  charge  founded, 
and  is  it  true  in  view  of  existing  edicts  and  treaties  ? 
There  can  be  no  question  that  the  missionary  is  en- 
titled to  a  residence  in  all  "  treaty  ports  " — a  phrase 
which  now  includes  cities  far  removed  from  the  sea- 
coast.  The  question,  then,  concerns  those  interior 
places,  not  mentioned  as  the  open  ports.  In  the  Treaty 
of  1860,  between  China  and  France,  Article  8  reads: 

"  It  shall  be  promulgated  throughout  the  length  and 
breadth  of  the  land,  in  the  terms  of  the  Imperial  Edict 
of  February  20,  1846,  that  it  is  permitted  to  all  people 
in  all  parts  of  China  to  propagate  and  practise  the 
'  things  of  the  Lord  of  Heaven,'  to  meet  together  for 
preaching  of  the  doctrine,  to  build  churches,  and  to 
worship :  further,  all  such  as  indiscriminately  arrest 
[Christians]  shall  be  duly  punished  ;  and  such  churches, 
schools,  cemeteries,  lands,  and  buildings  as  were  owned 
on  former  occasions  by  persecuted  Christians  shall  be 
paid  for,  and  the  money  handed  to  the  French  repre- 
sentative at  Peking,  for  transmission  to  the  Christians  in 
the  localities  concerned.  It  is,  in  addition,  permitted  to 
French  missionaries  to  rent  and  purchase  land  in  all  the 
provinces,  and  erect  buildings  thereon  at  pleasure." 


Missions  in  China  131 

It  is  claimed  that  the  last  sentence  of  this  article, 
beginning,  "  It  is,  in  addition,  permitted  to  French  mis- 
sionaries," etc.,  was  surreptitiously  inserted  in  the 
Chinese  text  of  the  treaty  by  a  French  interpreter. 
This  may  possibly  be  true  ;  but  it  is  also  true  that  the 
Chinese  accepted  it,  and  it  has  been  in  practical  opera- 
tion ever  since.  If  so,  then  the  favoured-nation  clause 
of  the  British,  German,  American,  and  other  treaties, 
secures  to  the  citizens  of  those  countries  the  same  con- 
cession. It  has  been  so  understood  and  interpreted  for 
a  generation,  having  the  sanction  of  usage,  as  well  as 
the  official  assent  and  practical  confirmation  of  the 
Chinese  authorities,  who  have,  upon  different  occasions, 
acknowledged  and  acted  upon  it.  Jesuits  and  Roman 
Catholic  missionaries  have  resided  in  the  interior  for  a 
generation.  To  hold  up  the  British,  American,  or 
European  missionary  to  contempt  because,  under  these 
conditions,  he  takes  up  his  residence  in  interior  towns, 
with  the  consent  of  the  Chinese  authorities,  and,  in 
peaceable,  law-abiding  fashion,  teaches  his  religion, 
conducts  his  school,  establishes  his  hospital,  and  min- 
isters in  other  kindly  ways  to  the  welfare  of  those  who 
accept  his  teaching,  and  love  his  person,  is  manifestly 
indefensible  and  gratuitous. 

These  clauses,  let  it  be  noted,  have  never  been 
interpreted  by  foreign  governments  in  any  denationaliz- 
ing sense.  Chinese  Christians  are  considered  subjects 
of  the  Chinese  Government.  They  (the  clauses)  have 
not  been  appealed  to  by  missionaries  except  to  parry 
what  is  regarded  as  injustice  and  oppression,  and  even 
then  only  with  the  sanction  of  the  consul.  They  have 
never  been  invoked  by  Protestant  missionaries  simply 
to  favour  the  interests  of  the  Christian  propaganda. 


132  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

They  have  been  supplemented,  moreover,  by  Imperial 
Edicts,  and  by  numerous  provincial  or  local  proclama- 
tions, granting  the  same  rights  in  explicit  terms.  Let 
there  be  no  more  sneering,  then,  at  these  clauses  ;  they 
have  served  a  useful  and  humane  purpose.  They  have 
faced  the  tiger  spirit  of  Chinese  fanaticism  for  more 
than  a  generation.  The  suffering  they  have  saved,  and 
the  awful  horrors  they  have  averted,  it  is  impossible  to 
estimate.  The  missionary,  then,  trangresses  no  formally 
acknowledged  or  openly  promulgated  Chinese  law  in 
teaching  Christianity.  No  officially  recognized  statute 
of  the  empire,  at  present  in  force,  forbids  it ;  on  the 
contrary,  the  Chinese  Government  has  repeatedly  per- 
mitted and  sanctioned  it.  Is  it  not  clear,  then,  that 
this  question  of  missionary  residence  and  propagation 
of  Christianity  in  China  is  neither  legally  nor  morally 
under  a  ban  ? 

"While  this  may  be  granted,  it  should  also  be  frankly 
recognized  that  the  situation  is  one  of  extreme  delicacy 
and  difficulty  ;  and  it  behooves  the  missionary  to  exer- 
cise the  greatest  circumspection,  tact,  and  wisdom  in 
availing  himself  of  his  privileges.  He  can  easily  trans- 
gress in  spirit,  if  not  in  practice,  the  limits  of  his  legal 
rights,  and  misuse,  if  not  abuse,  the  courtesy  extended 
to  him.  Christian  expediency  requires  rather  that,  as 
far  as  possible,  he  should  avoid  giving  offense  by  claim- 
ing his  rights  in  a  way  needlessly  to  occasion  irritation. 

No  one  can  deal  candidly  with  this  aspect  of  the 
subject  without  referring  to  the  openly  acknowledged 
and  deliberately  chosen  methods  of  the  Eoman  Catholic 
priesthood  in  China,  in  securing  for  themselves,  through 
the  agency  of  the  French  Government,  an  official  stand- 
ing  in    Chinese   courts,   and   thereupon    exercising  a 


Missions  in  China  133 

measure  of  civil  authority  on  behalf  of  their  Chinese 
adherents.  They  are  able,  no  doubt,  to  advance  a 
natural  explanation  of  this  comparatively  recent  ar- 
rangement, in  view  of  the  great  injustice  and  outrage 
to  which  their  defenseless  flocks  are  so  often  subject. 
It  cannot  be  doubted,  however,  that  this  assumption  of 
secular  prerogatives  is  most  unacceptable  to  the  Chinese 
officials,  and  is  a  frequent  cause  of  burning  irritation. 
It  is  viewed  by  the  entire  body  of  Protestant  mission- 
aries as  a  grave  mistake  in  missionary  policy.  None  of 
them,  from  considerations  both  of  expediency  and 
principle,  would  desire  to  exercise  this  power  of  magis- 
tracy. This  exceptional  concession  to  the  Roman 
Catholic  ecclesiastics,  however,  has  been  obtained  only 
within  a  brief  period,  and  cannot  be  regarded  as  a 
sufficient  explanation  of  the  universal  and  perennial 
antipathy  of  the  Chinese  to  the  foreigner.  It  can, 
moreover,  be  overaccentuated  and  exploited  as  an  anti- 
missionary  argument,  as  is  the  case  with  the  previous 
history  of  the  Roman  Catholic  status  in  China  in  the 
elaborate  condemnatory  essays  of  such  writers  as  Michie, 
Gundry,  and  others,  from  whom  current  newspaper 
critics  usually  draw  their  inspiration. 

The  fact  that  Protestant  missionaries,  when  occasion 
requires,  appeal  to  their  consul  is  sometimes  spoken  of 
to  their  disparagement.  But  it  should  not  be  forgotten 
that  the  position  of  the  foreigner  in  China  under  the 
provisions  of  the  exterritoriality  laws  is  a  peculiar  one. 
The  consul,  by  official  appointment,  exercises  the 
function  of  mediator,  lawyer,  protector,  judge,  and, 
in  a  certain  sense,  lawgiver,  on  his  behalf.  The 
foreign  citizen  is  explicitly  directed  in  the  treaties  to 
invariably  appeal  to  the  consul  when  it  is  necessary 


134  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

that  he  should  have  official  relations  with  the  authorities. 
He  is  not  allowed  to  address  officially  the  representa- 
tives of  the  government  without  first  submitting  his  case 
and  his  communication  to  his  consul.  He  can  be  tried, 
in  case  of  misdemeanour,  only  by  his  consul ;  and  all 
matters  subject  to  regulation  and  jurisdiction,  as  be- 
tween the  foreign  citizen  and  the  Chinese  authorities, 
must,  in  order  to  be  legal,  be  under  the  supervision  of 
the  consul,  or  higher  foreign  official.  Unless  this  fact 
is  taken  into  consideration,  the  appeal  to  consular  inter- 
vention may  be  misunderstood  and  misinterpreted  by 
an  outside  observer. 

Here,  too,  is  a  call  for  wisdom,  consideration,  and 
tact.  It  is  claimed  that  this  matter  of  consular  appeal 
is  abused.  A  careful  study  of  the  subject  has  not 
yielded  any  convincing  evidence  of  this — so  far,  at  least, 
as  Protestant  missionaries  are  concerned.  It  is  the 
custom  of  many  missionaries  to  approach  the  Chinese 
officials,  by  permission,  in  a  friendly  and  informal  way, 
and  ask  directly,  as  a  personal  favour,  any  service  they 
may  need.  This  is  often  done  with  excellent  results, 
and  without  the  least  offense. 

There  are  other  objections  of  lighter  weight  and  more 
vituperative  animus  usually  aimed  at  the  personality  of 
the  missionary,  or  the  quality  and  purpose  of  his  work. 
He  is  sneered  at  as  an  ignoramus,  or  a  boor — as  not  in 
the  same  class  even  with  the  literati  ;  he  brutally  offends 
Chinese  susceptibilities,  and  is  quite  incapable  of  living 
in  respectable,  decent,  and  dignified  form  in  a  Chinese 
community.  His  very  mission  as  a  messenger  of  truth 
— one  of  the  noblest  gifts  of  heaven  to  earth — is  pro- 
nounced to  be  an  insult  to  Chinese  manhood.  It  is  not 
worth  while  to  occupy  space  in  any  serious  attempt  to 


Missions  in  China  135 

refute  or  to  characterize  these  statements.  Not  all 
missionaries  are  built  upon  the  same  lines :  some  may 
err  in  judgment ;  some,  perhaps,  may  fail  in  usefulness ; 
but  of  the  great  body  of  the  mission  staff  in  China, 
these  cynical  charges  are  ungraciously  and  unqualifiedly 
false. 

The  spirit  in  which  Christian  missionaries  have  en- 
tered China  is  beyond  criticism.  They  obey  the  com- 
mand of  One  whom  they  love  and  serve,  and  who  has 
the  right  to  send  them  there.  They  seek  the  good  of 
the  Chinese ;  they  enter  upon  a  life  of  toil,  sacrifice, 
and  danger,  with  the  unselfish  purpose  of  giving  price- 
less gifts  to  an  alien  race.  They  offend  no  law  of 
courtesy,  kindness,  manliness,  or  honour,  in  taking  up 
their  residence  among  the  Chinese  to  teach  them  the 
truths  of  Christianity,  to  introduce  facilities  of  educa- 
tion, to  bring  the  blessing  of  healing,  and  to  minister  to 
them  in  other  helpful  and  humane  ways.  There  is  no 
need  to  apologize  for  this  attitude  toward  humanity  ; 
would  that  it  were  more  common  in  the  world  !  "When 
Christ  sees  fit  to  ask  the  pardon  of  the  human  race  for 
His  ministry  in  the  Incarnation,  then  His  missionaries 
may  ask  forgiveness  for  entering  China.  Until  then, 
let  them  go  bravely  on  with  their  high  mission.  Their 
attitude  is  not  one  of  intrusion  and  offensive  coercion  ; 
on  the  contrary,  it  is  one  of  deference  and  respect  for 
the  personal  freedom  and  dignity  of  the  Chinese.  They 
are  willing  to  toil  on  unnoticed  and  unhonoured ;  they 
bide  their  time,  and  wait  for  converts  during  years  of 
apparently  fruitless  effort,  as  did  many  of  China's  first 
missionaries.  They  ask  the  simple  boon  of  access  to 
the  intelligence  and  the  higher  moral  natures  of  the 
people.     They  do  not  seek  to  browbeat,  intimidate, 


136  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

deceive,  or  betray  a  single  Chinese ;  but  rather  to  reach 
him  by  gentle  persuasion,  and  a  manly  and  tender 
appeal  to  the  untrammelled  conscience  and  the  un- 
fettered will.  The  very  atmosphere  of  their  approach 
is  liberty  to  both  parties — to  the  teacher  and  the 
taught.  No  Chinese  ever  has  been  or  ever  will,  by 
any  legitimate  missionary  method,  be  compelled  to  em- 
brace Christianity. 

This  liberty  is  an  indisputable  human  right,  and  is, 
by  common  consent,  one  of  the  chief  insignia  of  civiliza- 
tion. There  is  no  source  of  authority,  human  or  divine, 
which  assigns  to  any  government  the  right  to  suppress 
or  withhold  liberty  of  conscience  in  religious  worship, 
so  long  as  the  laws  of  universal  morality  and  justice 
are  not  violated  in  the  use  of  that  liberty.  These 
rights  of  conscience  must  be  forever  undisturbed  so 
long  as  they  are  not  abused.  The  formal  recognition 
by  Western  governments  of  any  claim  on  the  part  of 
the  Chinese  authorities  to  the  legal  right  to  prohibit 
Christianity  in  the  empire,  either  in  the  case  of  foreign 
residents  or  Chinese  subjects,  would  be  a  historical  and 
moral  reversion  of  dismal  and  portentous  import.  The 
present-day  sponsors  of  the  higher  liberties  of  mankind 
will  never,  let  us  be  assured,  play  so  cowardly  and 
effeminate  a  role  upon  the  stage  of  modern  history. 

There  is  nothing  in  this  statement  which  intimates 
that  it  is  in  any  sense  the  proper  function  of  Christian 
statesmanship  to  propagate  Christianity  by  force.  This 
would  be,  at  once,  a  regrettable  and  dangerous  error. 
It  suited  the  temper  of  the  Chinese  Government,  under 
the  spell  of  a  reactionary  delirium,  to  assert  unparallelled 
prerogatives ;  but  this  is  only  a  spasm  of  barbarism  ;  it 
is  not  the  real  China.     There  are  millions  of  the  best 


Missions  in  China  137 

people  in  the  empire  who  view  the  Boxer  chaos  of 
horrors  with  sorrow,  despair,  and  lamentation.  A  de- 
mented China  means  tragedy,  as  we  now  know ; 
but  a  sane  China  is  capable  of  international  amenities. 
China  restored  to  her  senses  would  be  regarded  as  a 
triumph  of  diplomacy  and  civilization,  if  such  proves  to 
be  the  issue  of  present  events.  There  is  a  noble  reform 
element  in  the  empire,  which  some  years  ago  had  the 
leadership  of  the  Emperor  himself.  It  will  no  doubt 
be  utilized  by  Western  powers  in  the  coming  adjust- 
ment of  the  new  political  China  to  an  era  of  enlighten- 
ment and  progress.  The  partition  of  China,  as  sober 
statesmen,  no  doubt,  fully  realize,  would  involve  the 
greatest  peril  of  modern  history,  and  is,  moreover,  out- 
side the  pale  of  practical  politics,  being  sure  to  result 
in  endless  vexations,  and  an  eventual  outlay  so  stupen- 
dous that  it  would  threaten  to  impoverish  Christendom. 
The  empire,  whether  as  a  whole  or  in  part,  must  be 
reorganized  as  China.  The  government  should  be  left 
in  Chinese  hands,  chastened  and  restrained  by  a  whole- 
some respect  for  international  obligations,  pledged  to  a 
modus  vivendi  with  civilization,  and  reconciled  to  an 
"  open  door  "  of  political,  social,  commercial,  and  re- 
ligious access  on  the  part  of  Western  nations.  This  is, 
in  the  end,  best  for  China. 

Since  writing  this  review  article,  in  1900,  great 
changes  have  taken  place  in  China.  The  nation  has 
been  new-born,  and  the  outlook  of  destiny  has  been 
transfigured.  No  one  can  now  with  any  fairness  dis- 
pute the  influence  of  missions  in  giving  an  enlightened 
and  decisive  trend  to  the  development  of  the  new 
China.  No  one  who  is  familiar  with  recent  history 
will  be  inclined  to  deprecate  the  kindly,  uplifting,  and 


138  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

educating  influence  of  a  truly  Christian  and  civilizing 
ministry  to  a  nation  which  may  easily  rank  high  as  a 
world  power  in  coming  generations.1  If  insatiable 
ambition,  or  jealous  greed,  or  the  mad  lust  of  power, 
should  ever  lead  the  prominent  nations  of  Christendom 
to  destroy  one  another,  then  nations  of  the  Far  East, 
like  China  and  Japan,  may  quickly  take  rank  as  lead- 
ing world  powers  either  for  good  or  evil.  It  is  one 
great  aim  of  missions  that  the  influence  and  service  of 
coming  races  shall  promote  their  national  welfare,  and 
strengthen  the  bonds  of  international  peace. 

The  Christian  missionary  has  already  done  a  benef- 
icent and  increasingly  effective  service  to  the  Chinese 
people  by  imparting  to  their  social  evolution  the  in- 

1  Dr.  G.  E.  Morrison,  the  distinguished  correspondent  of  The  London 
Times  at  Peking,  recently  appointed  Foreign  Adviser  to  the  Chinese 
Government,  and  who  was  once  opposed  to  missions,  has  delivered  the 
following  striking  testimony  : 

"I  think  it  only  fair  to  say  that  the  good  name  which  Englishmen 
possess  in  China — a  name  for  straightforwardness  and  honesty — is  due 
not  only  to  the  high  character  of  our  official  class  and  our  business 
men,  but  also  to  the  high  character  of  the  English  missionaries,  whose 
pleasant  English  homes  are  found  from  one  end  of  the  empire  to  an- 
other. We  may  criticize  some  of  their  methods,  but  the  sum  total  of 
the  good  they  do  to  the  maintenance  of  our  good  name  is  beyond 
calculation.  Think  what  it  means  to  have  scattered  throughout  that 
vast  empire,  in  hundreds  of  stations,  high-minded  English  gentlemen, 
whose  word  is  their  bond,  living  simple  and  pure  lives — absolutely 
trusted — who  are  working  solely  for  the  good  of  the  people,  undis- 
mayed by  failure,  manly  and  courageous.  The  more  I  see  of  mission- 
ary work  in  China,  the  more  I  admire  it.  The  work  is  much  better 
organized  than  before.  There  is  now  combined  movement  where 
formerly  there  were  often  merely  disjointed  efforts.  From  an  ex- 
perience gained  in  witnessing  their  work  in  every  province  in  the 
empire,  I  wish  to  bear  my  unqualified  testimony  to  the  admirable 
work  done  by  our  missionaries  in  China."  (Quoted  in  the  "China 
Mission  Year  Book,  1911.") 


Missions  in  China  139 

valuable  tonic  of  modern  education,  combined  with 
higher  ethical  guidance  and  Christian  faith,  so  far  as 
they  are  inclined  to  cherish  it.  Notable  results  are 
already  apparent,  in  spite  of  exceptional  difficulties. 

The  evangelical  church-membership  of  China  is  now 
(1912)  about  280,000,  connected  with  slightly  over 
2,340  churches,  indicating  that  the  Christian  com- 
munity of  all  ages,  without  restriction  to  communi- 
cants, is  not  far  from  700,000.  Roman  Catholics 
number,  probably,  1,200,000 ;  so  that,  in  round  num- 
bers, there  is  a  population  of  about  1,900,000  Christians 
in  the  empire.  There  are  slightly  over  4,600  Protestant 
foreign  missionaries,  including  married  and  unmarried 
women,  and  the  Chinese  evangelical  associates  of  the 
missionary  in  religious  work  number  about  13,600. 
The  total  of  all  foreigners  in  China,  including  mission- 
aries, merchants,  and  all  classes  of  non-Chinese  resi- 
dents, was  estimated  by  the  Imperial  Customs  authori- 
ties, in  1910,  as  141,868.  It  is  no  doubt  somewhat 
larger  in  1912. 

The  total  of  higher  educational  institutions  under 
Protestant  auspices  in  1912  is  590 — distributed  as  fol- 
lows :  universities  and  colleges,  eighteen  ;  theological 
and  training  schools  or  classes,  129  ;  boarding-schools, 
seminaries,  and  high  schools,  438  ;  industrial  training 
institutions,  five  ;  schools  or  classes  for  teaching  medi- 
cine and  nursing,  eighty-one,  and  of  this  number 
twenty-six  are  for  the  training  of  nurses.  Besides 
these,  there  are  2,557  village  common  schools,  and 
thirteen  kindergartens.  There  are  gathered  in  these 
higher  institutions  24,489  pupils — making,  with  the 
addition  of  an  estimated  attendance  of  70,000  in  the 
common  schools,  a  total  of  about  94,500  pupils  under 


140  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

instruction.  The  Eoman  Catholic  totals  for  educational 
work  in  the  Chinese  Empire  are  5,621  schools,  of  all 
grades,  with  42,060  pupils,  including  the  inmates  of 
orphanages  and  other  charitable  institutions. 

There  are  forty-three  mission  publishing  houses  and 
printing-presses,  issuing  annually  a  large  and  varied 
volume  of  literature.  The  fine  Shanghai  Press  of  the 
American  Presbyterian  Mission  is,  easily,  the  most 
prominent  of  these  literary  agencies.  It  printed 
89,017,463  pages  in  the  year  reported  in  1912.  The 
call,  in  recent  years,  for  "Western  literature  in  Chinese 
dress  has  taxed  to  the  utmost  the  resources  of  these 
presses.  The  issues  of  the  Christian  Literature  Society 
for  China,  and  the  eight  other  tract  societies,  have  been 
unprecedented.  The  Religious  Tract  Society  of  London 
makes  an  extensive  contribution  of  valuable  literature 
to  the  Chinese  vernaculars.  The  Bible  is  translated 
into  twenty-six  distinct  languages  or  dialects  of  the 
empire,  and  is  widely  distributed. 

In  207  Protestant  mission  hospitals,  and  292  dispen- 
saries, from  which  recent  reports  have  been  received, 
are  treated  annually  1,065,406  patients.  In  addition 
there  is  one  asylum  for  the  insane.  There  are  still  a 
few  hospitals  and  dispensaries  concerning  which  no 
record  has  come  to  hand,  or  whose  statistics  are  incom- 
plete. Orphanages  and  foundling  asylums  under  Prot- 
estant care  number  fourteen ;  leper  asylums,  sixteen  ; 
homes  for  the  untainted  children  of  lepers,  three ; 
schools  for  the  blind  and  for  deaf  mutes,  eleven  ;  opium 
refuges,  100  ;  rescue  homes,  five ;  Young  Men's  Chris- 
tian Associations,  112,  with  two  additional  for  Chinese 
students  at  Tokyo  ;  and  similar  organizations  for  young 
women,  twenty-seven.     There  are  efforts,  also,  in  the 


Missions  in  China  141 

interest  of  temperance,  purity,  and  the  abolishing  of 
foot-binding,  the  latter  movement  having  been  in  its 
initial  stages  under  missionary  auspices,1  but  not  being 
exclusively  missionary  at  the  present  time,  as  it  is 
favoured  and  supported  by  an  influential  group  of 
ladies  belonging  to  the  families  of  merchants,  diplo- 
mats, and  other  foreign  residents.  The  total  value  of 
mission  property  is  not  at  hand  as  I  write,  but  it  must 
amount  to  many  millions  of  dollars.  Some  fine  build- 
ings for  the  Young  Men's  Christian  Association  have 
been  recently  erected. 

These  are  some  of  the  illuminating  and  beneficent 
results  of  the  missionary  occupation  of  China.  They 
are  forces  to  conjure  with  in  the  social,  intellectual, 
and  moral  transformation  of  the  empire.  To  them,  as 
much  as  to  any  other  agency,  let  us  frankly  acknowl- 
edge it,  was  due  the  reform  movement  that  startled  the 
conservative  reactionists,  and  has  evolved  such  won- 
drous changes.  Christianity,  if  true  to  itself,  cannot 
enter  China  without  reforming  it  in  many  radical  ways. 
These  throbbings  of  a  higher  life,  these  half -conscious 
thrills  of  destiny,  are  pulsing  in  some  of  the  best  blood 
of  China ;  and,  as  is  already  true  in  Japan,  they  will 
contribute  a  measure  of  capacity  and  solid  worth  to  the 
public  service  of  the  State  which  in  time  will  act  a  de- 
cisive part  in  moulding  the  national  destiny  of  one- 
fourth  of  the  human  race.  Let  us  not  be  dismayed  by 
the  phenomenal  international  experience  of  1900  in  the 
Far  East.  It  meant,  clearly :  Hands  off  China  merely 
for  purposes  of  conquest,  partition,  or  political  aggran- 
dizement ;  hands  on  China  to  secure  at  least  the  de- 
cencies   and    necessities  of   orderly  government,   the 

1  "  Christian  Missions  and  Social  Progress,"  Vol.  II,  pp.  352-366. 


142  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

observance  of  treaty  obligations,  and  the  "  open  door  " 
to  trade,  civilization,  human  intercourse,  and  religious 
liberty.  This  will  insure,  at  the  same  time,  the  highest 
welfare  of  the  Chinese,  and  unveil  to  them  the  hidden 
import  of  their  long-neglected  and  scorned  opportunity 
to  fulfill  their  mission  in  the  sisterhood  of  nations,  to 
which  they  rightfully  belong. 

The  recent  momentous  changes  in  China  fill  a  large 
place  in  present-day  literature,  and  are  of  absorbing  in- 
terest to  students  of  world  politics.  Professors  Keinsch 
and  Ross,  of  the  University  of  Wisconsin — the  former 
in  his  "  Intellectual  and  Political  Currents  in  the  Far 
East,"  and  the  latter  in  his  volume  entitled,  "The 
Changing  Chinese  " — have  given  instructive  surveys  of 
present  conditions  in  the  Far  East.  Dr.  Arthur  J. 
Brown,  in  his  latest  volume,  "The  Chinese  Pe volu- 
tion," has  presented  an  informing  and  able  review  of 
recent  events,  based  upon  up-to-date  sources  of  infor- 
mation, and  indicating  an  expert  touch  with  current 
movements. 


VI 

The  Lessons  of  Martyrdom :   Its  Message 
to  the  Church  of  Our  Day 


There  is  nothing  finer  nor  more  pathetic  to  me  than  the  way  in  which 
missionaries  unlearn  the  love  of  the  old  home,  die  to  their  native  land, 
and  wed  their  hearts  to  the  people  they  have  served  and  won ;  so  that  they 
cannot  rest  in  England,  but  must  return  to  lay  their  bones  where  they 
spent  their  hearts  for  Christ.  How  vulgar  the  common  patriotisms  seem 
beside  this  inverted  homesickness,  this  passion  of  a  kingdom  which  has 
no  frontiers  and  no  favoured  race,  the  passion  of  a  homeless  Christ ! 

P.  T.  Forsyth,  D.  D. 

For  my  own  part,  I  have  never  ceased  to  rejoice  that  God  has  ap- 
pointed me  to  such  an  office.  People  talk  of  the  sacrifice  I  have  made  in 
spending  so  much  of  my  life  in  Africa.  Can  that  be  called  a  sacrifice 
which  is  simply  paid  back  as  a  small  part  of  a  great  debt  owing  to  our 
God,  which  we  can  never  repay?  Is  that  a  sacrifice  which  brings  its  own 
blest  reward  in  healthful  activity,  the  consciousness  of  doing  good,  peace 
of  mind,  and  a  bright  hope  of  a  glorious  destiny  hereafter  ?  Away  with 
the  word  in  such  a  view,  and  with  such  a  thought !  It  is  emphatically  no 
sacrifice.     Say  rather  it  is  a  privilege. 

David  Livingstone. 


VI 

THE  LESSONS  OF  MARTYRDOM ' 

Its  Message  to  the  Church  of  Our  Day 

THERE  are  many  impressive  truths  pertaining 
to  God's  purposes  and  methods  in  creation, 
and  to  His  providential  dealings  with  the 
human  race,  concerning  which  we  learn  much  from 
sources  outside  of  revelation.  There  are  also  others 
pertaining  to  the  progress  of  His  spiritual  kingdom,  and 
the  culture  of  the  individual  Christian  life,  which  are 
derived  in  large  measure  from  the  teachings  of  experi- 
ence. History  and  experience  are  great  and  profitable 
instructors  concerning  many  things  not  fully  elucidated 
in  revelation. 

Martyrdom  is  a  notable  fact  of  Church  history,  and 
a  momentous  incident  of  Christian  experience.  It  is 
intended  no  doubt  to  convey  to  us  lessons  of  profound 
import,  written  for  our  guidance,  encouragement,  and 
inspiration,  not  in  commonplace  ink,  but  in  the  sacred 
blood  of  the  beloved.  The  record  which  we  find  of  it 
in  Scripture  as  a  part  of  the  experience  of  the  Church 
is  almost  entirely  in  the  form  of  historical  reference  to 
individual  instances.  There  are  very  cheering  and 
comforting  assurances  as  to  God's  sustaining  grace  to 
those  who  endure  it,  and  of  His  special  recognition  of 
the  loyalty  which  it  involves  ;  yet  little  is  said  in  the 

1  The  New  York  Observer,  May  2,  1901. 
'45 


]  46  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

line  of  instruction  as  to  its  meaning,  or  with  a  view  to 
enforcing  its  lessons.  We  are  left  to  face  the  actual,  or 
potential,  reality,  and  to  draw  our  own  conclusions  con- 
cerning it.  "  The  blood  of  the  martyrs  is  the  seed  of 
the  Church,"  is  not  a  saying  of  revelation,  but  a  his- 
torical verdict,  pronounced  as  early  as  the  age  of 
Tertullian.  In  its  original  form  it  appears  in  an 
impassioned  address  to  heathen  judges  at  the  close  of 
his  "  Apology,"  as  follows  :  "  The  Christian  blood  you 
spill  is  like  the  seed  you  sow  ;  it  springs  from  the  earth 
again,  and  fructifies  the  more." 

This  seemingly  minimizing  silence  of  Scripture  is  no 
doubt  sufficiently  explained  by  the  fact  that  God  did 
not  think  it  wise  to  urge  martyrdom,  except  as  the  gen- 
eral exhortation  to  fidelity  implied  it.  There  was 
danger,  moreover,  as  we  have  good  evidence  in  Church 
history,  of  its  occupying  an  exceptionally  high  place 
in  the  scale  of  legal  merit,  and  proving  a  stimulus  to 
saint  worship,  with  its  accompanying  adoration  of 
material  things  and  places  associated  with  the  persons 
and  lives  of  the  martyrs.  It  was,  moreover,  most  un- 
desirable that  Christians  should  court  martyrdom  under 
the  impulse  of  an  unbalanced  and  unwholesome  state 
of  religious  feeling.  It  is  natural,  rather,  that  they 
should  shrink  from  it,  or  be  permitted  at  least  to  ask 
God,  if  He  so  wills,  to  let  the  cup  pass  from  them.  On 
the  other  hand,  it  may  be  counted  as  heroic  in  a  pure 
and  sublime  sense  to  meet  it  when  called  upon  to  do  so, 
with  an  exultant  spirit  and  an  unflinching  courage, 
based  upon  unfaltering  trust.  The  fifth  seal  in  the 
Book  of  Revelation  deals  exclusively  with  "  the  souls 
of  them  that  were  slain  for  the  "Word  of  God."  It  is 
said  that  they  were  "  under  the  Altar  "  in  heaven — a 


The  Lessons  of  Martyrdom  147 

place  of  securest  shelter,  and  that  "  white  robes  were 
given  to  every  one  of  them." 

It  may  seem  presumptuous  to  undertake  to  formulate 
the  divine  estimate  of  martyrdom,  or  to  assign  the  re- 
lationship which  in  God's  view  it  bears  to  other  facts 
of  Christian  experience,  yet  if  we  can  discover,  even 
tentatively,  the  divine  verdict  concerning  it,  we  shall 
be  able  to  apprehend  more  fully  its  purpose,  and  to 
appreciate  more  clearly  its  lessons.  There  seem  to  be 
good  reasons,  both  Scriptural  and  historical,  which 
justify  us  in  giving  it  an  exalted  place — perhaps  in 
some  respects  the  very  highest — in  that  routine  of  dis- 
ciplinary training  by  which  God  develops  and  tests  His 
people. 

The  roll-call  of  possible  experiences  in  the  process  of 
sublimating  Christian  manhood  and  perfecting  Chris- 
tian character  for  service  in  His  kingdom  is  a  long  one. 
It  begins  with  trifles  which  annoy  us  and  try  our  pa- 
tience, and  continues  through  disappointments,  losses, 
anxieties,  pains,  sorrows,  and  every  variety  of  chastise- 
ment. It  includes  loneliness,  desperate  battling  with 
temptations,  saddening  falls  into  sin,  and  experiences 
of  spiritual  depression  sometimes  approaching  despair. 
It  carries  us  still  further  into  the  higher  region  of  vol- 
untary sacrifice  for  Christ's  sake,  and  at  the  end  of  all 
possible  attainments  in  unselfish  surrender  and  tri- 
umphant dedication  we  seem  to  reach  the  last  call  of 
God  when  He  summons  us  to  voluntary  death  for  His 
sake.  He  seems  to  reserve  this  as  a  distinct  and  notable 
honour,  appointed  to  a  comparatively  small  number  of 
His  followers.  He  has  nothing  more  to  ask  of  a  soul 
as  a  tribute  of  devotion  and  supreme  surrender  when 
He  writes  martyrdom  as  the  final  word  of  a  life  on 


148  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

earth.  This  is  the  Holy  of  Holies  of  loyalty.  It  is  the 
Calvary  of  the  individual  soul,  and  concerning  it  the 
very  words  of  our  Lord — "  It  is  finished  " — are  rever- 
ently and  sacredly  true. 

We  venture  then  to  give  this  interpretation  of  God's 
purpose  in  appointing  the  test  of  death  in  witness-bear- 
ing, often  under  circumstances  of  great  horror  and  pro- 
longed agony,  to  so  many  of  His  dear  people.  It  is 
intended  to  mark  the  culmination  of  sacrificial  surren- 
der, and  to  be  the  heroic  sign  of  an  unwavering  loyalty. 
As  such  it  must  insure  an  exceptional  recognition,  and 
should  quicken  into  exceptional  intensity  the  spirit  of 
fidelity  and  devotion  in  the  Christian  Church. 

In  this  busy  age,  with  our  material  environment  of 
liberty  and  civilization,  amid  the  softly  upholstered 
Christianity  of  our  times,  we  must  open  afresh  our  re- 
ligious histories,  and  search  the  annals  of  the  strenuous 
periods  of  the  Church's  life,  to  remind  ourselves  what 
an  amazing  part  martyrdom  has  played  in  the  drama  of 
Christian  progress.  The  ponderous  tomes  of  the  "  Acta 
Sanctorum,"  and  the  once  popular  summary  of  evan- 
gelical martyrologium  which  we  have  in  Fox's  "  Book 
of  Martyrs,"  with  its  painful  illustrations  and  gruesome 
details,  may  give  here  and  there  too  much  credit  to 
tradition  and  legendary  stories ;  yet  there  is  an  awful 
reality  in  the  grim  facts  they  chronicle,  and  a  bewilder- 
ing redundance  of  heroism  in  their  bald  records. 

The  earliest  extant  annals  of  Christianity  indicate  the 
existence  of  martyrologies  from  the  pens  of  the  Church 
fathers  and  apologists,  some  of  whom,  as  Ignatius, 
Polycarp,  and  Cyprian,  were  themselves  martyrs. 
From  this  fountainhead  down  through  the  stream 
of   Christian   history,   beginning,  as  we  know,   with 


The  Lessons  of  Martyrdom  149 

Jerome,  who  probably  compiled  from  still  earlier 
sources,  we  have  numerous  cumbrous  volumes  of  the 
"Acta  Sanctorum  Martyrum."  The  early  Christian 
biographies  fairly  glow  with  the  martyr  spirit,  revealed 
in  alert  and  unflinching  antagonism  to  the  attempts  of 
heathenism  to  dominate  and  subdue  the  Christian  con- 
science. 

From  the  days  of  Stephen  and  Paul,  through  the 
dreadful  persecutions  of  the  Koman  emperors,  and  sub- 
sequently the  cruelties  of  the  pagan  hordes  at  the  over- 
throw of  the  empire,  on  to  the  time  of  the  assaults 
upon  the  earlier  and  later  mediaeval  witnesses  for  evan- 
gelical truth — the  Culdees,  the  Albigenses,  the  Wal- 
denses,  the  Bohemians,  and  the  Moravians — we  have 
an  almost  unbroken  succession  of  those  who  sealed  their 
testimony  with  their  blood.  The  dark  ages  of  the  In- 
quisition in  Southern  Europe  may  be  noted,  and  then 
the  dismal  record  of  the  papal  efforts  to  arrest  the 
Reformation  in  Great  Britain,  and  in  the  countries  of 
Central  and  Northern  Europe,  until  passing  Vassy, 
St.  Bartholomew,  and  the  story  of  Huguenot  heroism, 
we  come  at  length  to  modern  times. 

In  connection  with  the  missionary  movements  of  the 
eighteenth  and  nineteenth  centuries,  we  have  a  renewal 
of  the  same  thrilling  story  of  martyrdom  in  aspects 
which  are  not  less  heroic  and  inspiring  than  those 
which  characterized  past  history.  Missionaries  them- 
selves have  shared  in  the  experience — Williams  and 
the  Gordons  of  Erromanga,  Patteson  of  Melanesia, 
Hannington,  Smith,  and  O'Neill  of  Uganda,  the  martyr 
band  of  Kucheng,  and  lo !  the  number  increases  with 
the  last  hours  of  the  century  which  has  just  closed,  until 
time  fails  to  tell  of  these  our  brethren  and  sisters,  some 


1 50  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

of  whom  we  have  known  in  the  flesh,  who  have  during 
recent  years  entered  heaven  with  the  martyr's  crown. 

Besides  the  missionaries,  there  is  a  still  more  wonder- 
ful array  of  native  Christians  who  have  stood  this 
supreme  test  with  fortitude  and  honour.  Not  to  speak 
of  Madagascar,  Uganda,  Persia,  Syria,  Asia  Minor,  and 
the  Pacific  Islands,  we  have  only  to  turn  to  current 
literature  and  read  of  Chinese  by  the  thousands  who 
have  firmly  accepted  ostracism,  torture,  and  death, 
rather  than  deny  their  Lord.  The  careful  estimate  of 
Dr.  J.  R.  Hykes,  agent  of  the  American  Bible  Society 
in  China,  is  that  183  Protestant  missionaries  (sixty  men, 
seventy-five  women,  and  forty-eight  children)  were  mar- 
tyred, and  the  number  of  native  Christians  (including 
Eoman  Catholics)  he  places  as  high  as  40,000. 

Many  incidents  inspiring  and  touching  are  to  be 
found  in  the  records  of  recent  Chinese  martyrdom. 
Who  can  but  admire  the  exultant  realism  of  faith 
which  must  have  filled  the  soul  of  Hsieh,  the  member 
of  the  North  Church  in  Peking,  who  insisted  upon 
donning  his  best  clothes  as  if  for  a  festal  occasion  when 
he  was  led  out  to  his  martyrdom.  "  I  am  to  enter  the 
palace  of  the  King,"  he  said,  "  and  the  best  clothes  I 
have  should  be  used."  No  wonder  the  Chinese  dug 
out  his  heart  to  find  the  secret  of  his  courage.  As 
the  times  grew  dark,  and  dread  uncertainties  were 
hovering  over  the  lives  of  the  Christians,  a  Bible  class 
of  simple  village  women,  in  view  of  the  possibilities  of 
coming  trial,  all  rose  one  day  in  the  class  room  "  to 
signify  their  willingness  to  die  for  Christ,  if  He  should 
put  them  to  the  test." 

One  stout-hearted  disciple,  with  the  sword  at  his 
throat,  replied  to  the  test  question :  "  Yes,  I  am  a 


i 


The  Lessons  of  Martyrdom  151 

Christian,"  but  as  he  escaped  the  execution  of  the 
threat,  he  was  asked  afterward  how  he  could  witness  so 
boldly  when  his  life  was  threatened.  He  replied :  "  I 
have  just  been  reading  how  Peter  denied  his  Master, 
and  afterward  went  out  and  wept  bitterly,  and  how 
could  I  deny  my  Lord  ?  "  It  adds  to  the  significance 
of  his  testimony  that  he  was  not  even  a  member  of  a 
Christian  Church,  although  he  had  three  times  applied 
for  admission.  He  had  been  kept  waiting,  because  his 
knowledge  of  Christian  truth  was  supposed  to  be  too 
imperfect,  and  he  was  in  need  of  further  instruction 
and  experience.  There  is  little  doubt  that  his  next  ap- 
plication was  promptly  accepted. 

"What  more  splendid  example  of  fortitude  than  that 
Chinese  Christian  who  declared  himself  a  believer,  in 
the  face  of  the  mob,  and  after  his  ears  were  cut  off  still 
unwaveringly  replied  :  "  I  am  a  Christian."  Then  his 
hands  were  severed  at  the  wrists,  and  he  was  given  an- 
other opportunity  to  deny  his  Lord,  and  yet  save  his 
life,  but  he  again  refused  to  recant,  and  was  beaten  to 
death,  and  beheaded.  A  young  student  received  two 
thousand  blows,  but  would  not  recant.  Even  school- 
boys and  schoolgirls  have  in  many  authenticated  in- 
stances met  death  with  a  heroism  which  adds  a  peculiar 
lustre  to  this  story  of  martyrdom. 

Among  the  six  Christian  reformers  of  Foochow  who 
were  beheaded  by  the  Empress  Dowager,  there  were 
three  who  expressed  a  desire  to  be  baptized,  yet 
"  humbly  refrained,  because  it  would  bring  such 
ignominy  on  the  Church."  They  did  not  know  that 
their  names  would  be  an  honour  on  the  rolls  of  the 
Church,  and  that  their  example  would  be  a  lesson  to  the 
world. 


152  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

The  Spirit  of  Missions,  the  magazine  of  the  Protes- 
tant Episcopal  Missionary  Society,  remarks  truly  and 
impressively  concerning  the  Chinese  who  have  passed 
so  creditably  through  this  terrible  ordeal,  that  "  the 
conduct  of  the  native  Christians  has  been  an  inspiration 
to  their  teachers,  and  should  be  an  inspiration  to  Chris- 
tians everywhere.  They  have  met  death  without 
flinching,  giving  their  lives  for  the  faith  as  truly  as  did 
the  martyrs  of  the  early  days.  How  many  of  them 
have  borne  witness  to  the  sustaining  power  of  our  Lord 
may  never  be  known,  but  their  memory  and  their 
example  will  ever  be  cherished  in  the  China  that  is  to 
be."  These  humble  brethren  of  another  race  and  an- 
other clime  have  rendered  an  inestimable  service  to 
Christianity  as  it  entered  the  twentieth  century.  Let 
the  Church  never  presume  to  think  that  it  has  no  need 
and  no  use  for  Chinese  Christians.  They  have  brought 
to  it  precious  gifts  of  the  highest  value  and  the  noblest 
quality.  Let  no  cavilling  critic  of  missions  ever  here- 
after speak  of  them  with  contempt.  Let  Christians 
everywhere  rather  acknowledge  them  as  brethren  of 
the  common  faith,  beloved,  honoured,  tested,  and 
crowned. 

The  ancient  martyr  glory  of  the  Church  has  not 
paled  in  these  latter  days.  The  vision  which  John  saw 
of  a  great  multitude  "  that  were  beheaded  for  the 
witness  of  Jesus,  and  for  the  "Word  of  God  .  .  . 
and  who  lived  and  reigned  with  Christ  a  thousand 
years,"  will  number  many  thousands  of  these  our  fel- 
low Christians  and  contemporaries  in  distant  China. 
"We,  too,  live  in  an  age  of  the  martyrs.  We,  also,  may 
ask  ourselves  what  would  God  teach  us  by  this  marvel- 
lous chapter  of  martyrology  which  has  just  been  writ- 


The  Lessons  of  Martyrdom  153 

ten  before  our  eyes.  This  fiery  trial,  to  be  sure,  is  far 
removed  from  Christendom.  Its  realities  are  not  a  part 
of  our  personal  experience,  nevertheless  we  are  touched 
by  it  in  a  way  that  should  arrest  attention,  since  Chris- 
tians who  are  in  a  very  real  sense  the  spiritual  children 
of  our  own  Churches  are  themselves  the  victims.  It 
becomes  for  us  a  species  of  indirect  martyrdom — merci- 
fully distant  and  safe — yet  for  this  very  reason  ought 
we  not  to  ponder  its  higher  meaning,  and  not  allow  it 
to  pass  without  entering,  as  best  we  may,  into  its  spirit, 
and  heeding  its  message  ? 

A  few  lessons  seem  to  be  especially  prominent  in  this 
connection  as  summarizing  the  purpose  and  power  of 
martyrdom  in  Christian  history. 

It  is  surely  a  supreme  test.  As  such,  if  successfully 
endured,  it  is  honouring  to  Christ,  and  takes  its  place 
among  the  evidences  of  the  sincerity  of  faith,  and  the 
loyalty  of  the  soul's  allegiance  to  the  Gospel.  The 
fact  that  it  is  permitted  and  so  often  exacted  is,  more- 
over, a  sign  of  Christ's  confidence  in  the  readiness  of 
His  faithful  followers  to  suffer  to  the  uttermost  for  His 
sake. 

It  is  also  a  crowning  testimony  to  the  reality  of 
Christian  experience,  and  the  power  of  Christ's  love. 
In  no  way  can  men  so  convincingly  bear  witness  to  the 
preciousness  of  the  Gospel,  and  its  power  to  dominate 
the  soul,  as  by  yielding  up  their  lives  rather  than  deny 
it.  The  world,  and  the  Church  too,  needs  just  such 
undaunted  allegiance  to  set  the  seal  of  deathless,  un- 
worldly reality  to  the  Christian  profession.  The 
martyr  is,  etymologically,  first  of  all  a  witness,  and 
then  a  witness  unto  death.  He  speaks  his  last  word, 
perhaps  with  shrivelling  lips  and  almost  inarticulate 


154  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

agony,  for  Christ,  and  it  is  not  in  vain.  Men  heed  and 
ponder,  they  are  convinced,  they  grow  strong,  they  be- 
lieve, and  soon  they  cast  in  their  lot  with  Christ  and 
His  heroic  witnesses.  This  has  been  the  historic  out- 
come of  martyrdom.  It  has  never  stifled  faith  ;  it  has 
set  it  aflame. 

It  is  truly  a  noble  example.  The  world  is  full  of 
song,  and  tender  with  reverence,  in  honour  of  those  who 
die  for  others.  It  is  a  sweeter,  better,  and  safer  world 
because  of  these  supreme  examples  of  sacrifice  which 
are  from  time  to  time  recorded.  It  would  be  a  thousand 
pities  if  the  religion  of  Christ  could  point  to  no  illus- 
trations of  unselfish  heroism  which  would  have  the  rank 
and  power  of  this  sublime  example.  It  is  only  the 
most  hopeless  cynicism  which  can  resist  the  influence 
of  a  voluntary  sacrifice  of  this  magnitude.  The  great 
heart  of  humanity,  and  the  nearer  heart  of  Christian 
fellowship,  alike  thrill  with  the  inspiration  of  such  in- 
extinguishable loyalty.  "What  an  undying  note  of 
triumph  sounds  through  all  Church  history,  caught 
from  the  lips  of  the  martyrs,  and  echoed  from  age  to 
age  !  We  in  these  days  of  less  strenuous  conflict  must 
not  let  its  music  sink  into  silence.  We  need  its  power 
to  cheer,  to  charm,  and  to  inspire  us,  and  fit  us  to  live 
amid  the  subtle  and  somewhat  enervating  religious  con- 
ditions of  our  times,  with  minds  and  hearts  ready  for 
all  unshrinking  obedience. 

It  is,  finally,  a  heroic  means  of  grace.  An  epigram- 
matic statement  of  this  truth  is  the  well-known  formula  : 
"  Blood  of  the  martyrs  is  the  seed  of  the  Church." 
The  Catacombs  seemed  at  one  time  like  the  burial-place 
of  Christianity  ;  they  represented  rather  a  deep  under- 
tone of  living  faith  and  fervid  loyalty  which  has  echoed 


The  Lessons  of  Martyrdom  155 

from  heart  to  heart  through  all  the  ages  of  Christian 
history.  The  Coliseum  has  been  called  "  a  tragedy  in 
stone  "  ;  it  is  rather  the  embodiment  of  heroic  memories, 
which  have  refreshed  and  strengthened  the  Church 
through  all  its  conflict.  It  is  a  fair  question  whether 
the  Church  would  have  worthily  and  triumphantly 
survived  if  it  had  not  had  the  discipline  of  martyrdom. 
If  such  corruption  and  such  disheartening  lapses  have 
marked  its  career,  in  spite  of  its  fiery  training,  would  it 
have  held  its  own  if  it  had  never  known  the  inspiration 
of  the  martyr  spirit  ? 

This  is  a  time  of  great  activity  and  elaborate  outlay 
on  the  part  of  the  Church.  "We  can  at  least  see  to  it 
that  we  do  our  work  with  an  unreserved  devotion.  We 
may  not  be  appointed  to  die  for  Christ,  but  we  may 
live  for  Him  in  the  spirit  of  unselfish  heroism,  facing 
duty  without  flinching,  and  making  our  lives  a  living 
sacrifice  to  God  and  His  service.  There  are  many 
great  and  good  causes  to  be  espoused  and  served,  for 
which  lovers  of  truth  and  righteousness  may  die  daily. 
If  the  hallowed  lessons  of  Chinese  loyalty  help  us  to  a 
higher  level  of  moral  power,  and  quicken  within  us  a 
happy  alacrity  in  our  Lord's  service,  enabling  us  to  live 
and  toil  as  those  who  would,  if  called  upon,  readily  accept 
martyrdom,  we  too  shall  honour  Christ,  and  learn  profit- 
able lessons  from  those  faithful  brethren  and  humble 
converts  who  counting  not  their  lives  dear  have  entered 
heaven  in  triumph. 


VII 

The  Appeal  of  Missions  to  the  Modern 
Church 


If  we  could  conceive  of  the  Renaissance  of  Learning  after  the  dark 
ages — the  interest  in  literature  that  came  with  the  new  study  of  Latin  and 
Greek,  and  the  awakening  of  thought  that  followed  upon  the  discovery  of 
new  worlds — material  and  intellectual — and  then  add  to  this  the  new 
forces  of  the  Reformation — the  reconstruction  of  men's  moral  and  religious 
ideas  and  ideals,  and  the  recovery  of  the  right  of  the  individual  conscience  ; 
and  if  to  these  we  could  conceive  as  added  the  French  Revolution — the 
break-up  of  all  that  men  had  regarded  as  final  in  social  and  political  or- 
ganization ;  and  if  to  these  again  could  be  added  the  movement  of  modern 
science  which  began  with  Lord  Bacon's  Novum  Organum — and  the 
application  of  the  inductive  method  in  the  discovery  of  the  forces  and  laws 
of  nature  ;  and  if  further  we  could  conceive  of  these  great  forces  as  operat- 
ing— not  at  different  times  in  different  countries,  through  a  period  of  several 
centuries,  but  as  combined  and  concentrated  in  a  brief  decade  or  two  in 
one  country  upon  a  great  people,  we  should  have  a  more  adequate  concep- 
tion of  the  magnitude  and  significance  of  the  present  Revolution  in  China. 

We  are  familiar  with  the  epoch-making  transformations  which  followed 
as  the  effects  of  these  different  forces  operating  at  different  times  as  ideals. 
Men  moved  out  timidly  after  dim  ideals,  not  sure  whither  they  would  lead, 
and  yet  how  great  was  their  power.  To  the  Chinese  these  ideals  have 
come  with  all  the  force  of  demonstration  in  the  daily  life  of  contemporary 
peoples ;  and  not  only  peoples  of  the  West,  whom  they,  too,  had  been 
taught  to  regard  as  peculiar,  to  whom  these  changes  came  through  gradual 
development,  but  in  Asiatic  Japan,  where  Western  ideas  were  adopted  and 
adapted  in  a  brief  generation. 

The  Rev.  John  E.  Williams, 
Vice-President  University  of  Nanking. 


VII 

THE  APPEAL  OF  MISSIONS  TO  THE  MODEKN 
CHUKCH1 

THE  Christian  Church  can  hardly  fail  to  realize 
its  immense  debt  to  mission  activities  in  the 
past.  It  is  far  more  important,  however,  that 
it  should  comprehend  the  growing  strenuousness  and 
the  cumulative  import  of  the  missionary  obligation  of 
the  present. 

The  Great  Commission  was  undoubtedly  spoken  to 
the  Church  in  all  ages,  and  is  a  command  which  is 
equally  in  force  at  all  times.  Christ  did  not  address 
one  generation  of  His  followers,  and  excuse  another ; 
He  intended  rather  that  this  divine  obligation  to  "  dis- 
ciple the  nations  "  should  be  one  of  those  supreme  factors 
of  history  which  are  alive  f orevermore.  It  gathers  new 
meaning  and  power,  however,  from  the  historic  environ- 
ment and  the  providential  conditions  which  surround  it 
in  various  ages  of  the  world. 

Its  import  to  the  modern  Church  at  the  opening  of  a 
new  century  and  the  dawning  of  a  new  era  is  vitalized 
and  intensified  by  the  exceptional  conditions  under 
which  the  Christianity  of  our  day  assumes  its  responsi- 
bility and  faces  its  duty.  It  is  a  period  of  world 
movements  in  many  departments  of  human  activities, 
and  of  world  touch  and  interchange  such  as  have  never 
been  known  before.  The  whole  earth  is  brought  into 
focus,  in  the  press,  in  popular  literature,  in  commercial 

1  The  Churchman,  January  5,  1901. 
*59 


160  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

enterprise,  in  international  politics,  and  in  the  religious 
significance  of  our  present  world  opportunities.  It 
is  a  time  of  world  vision,  of  expanding  thoughts,  of 
enlarged  plans  and  projects,  especially  in  all  which 
concerns  the  higher  interests  of  mankind.  The  poet's 
faith  is  justified  by  what  is  already  recognized  as  every- 
day fact. 

"  Yet  I  doubt  not  thro'  the  ages  one  increasing 
purpose  runs, 
And  the  thoughts  of  men  are  widen' d  with 
the  process  of  the  suns." 

Among  several  of  the  great  peoples  of  the  earth  "  the 
Empire  "  is  already  a  more  magic  word  than  the  nation. 
Whatever  perils  may  lurk  in  the  imperial  idea,  and  how- 
ever grave  may  be  the  possibilities  of  wrong-doing  in 
the  sphere  of  such  movements,  it  cannot  be  denied  that 
this  conception  is  a  ruling  one  in  the  minds  of  many  of 
the  world's  leaders  to-day.  It  will,  no  doubt,  have  a 
profound  influence  in  shaping  the  course  of  events  in  the 
new  century. 

It  will,  therefore,  be  one  of  the  great  and  urgent 
duties  of  the  Church  of  the  immediate  future  to  purify, 
guide,  and  utilize  in  the  interests  of  righteousness, 
justice,  peace,  and  the  higher  progress  of  man,  this 
already  regnant  conception  of  an  imperial  policy.  We 
use  the  expression  not  alone  in  the  sense  of  rule  or 
dominion,  but  of  world  interchange  in  every  sphere 
where  mutual  rights  may  be  conserved  and  mutual 
benefits  imparted.  Christian  principle  at  home  can  do 
much  to  restrain,  control,  and  mould  the  national  atti- 
tude toward  this  inevitable  problem.  It  can  seek  to 
eliminate  the  ideas  of  conquest  and  exploitation  ;  it  can 


The  Appeal  of  Missions  to  the  Modern  Church   161 

check  the  tendencies  of  military  ambition ;  it  can  con- 
demn projects  of  political  or  commercial  greed ;  it  can 
secure  what  is  fair,  honourable,  and  conducive  to  the 
betterment  of  other  races  with  which  we  are  brought 
into  contact. 

In  no  other  way,  however,  can  the  Church  so  dignify 
this  consciousness  of  enlarged  responsibility,  and  so 
exert  its  influence  in  behalf  of  beneficent  results,  as  in 
the  sphere  of  missions.  Spiritual  expansion  through 
the  dissemination  of  Christianity,  by  methods  which 
Christ  approves,  is  one  of  the  chartered  privileges  and 
duties  of  the  religion  of  Christ.  No  one  has  a  right  to 
prohibit  it,  or  deny  its  opportunity  to  others,  although 
each  individual  must  be  left  free  to  welcome  it  or  not, 
in  the  exercise  of  his  voluntary  preference.  The 
supreme  right  of  choice  should  be  secured  and  guarded 
both  in  Christian  and  heathen  lands,  in  so  far  as  it  is 
practicable  to  do  so.  The  universal  dominion  of  Christ, 
by  means  which  do  no  violence  to  human  freedom,  is 
an  aspect  of  the  imperial  idea  which  can  have  no  taint 
of  dishonour,  no  peril  of  self-aggrandizement,  and  no 
fear  of  evil  results  associated  with  it.  Christ,  in  the 
project  which  He  has  expounded  of  a  universal  king- 
dom based  upon  spiritual  allegiance  to  Him,  and  im- 
plying Christian  brotherhood  among  men,  has  given  to 
the  world  an  imperial  policy  which  is  so  majestic  and 
benign  that  it  is  capable  of  hallowing  and  beautifying 
every  other  conception  of  authority  and  responsible 
rule  which  is  brought  into  harmony  with  it.  All 
mutual  relationships,  all  national  interchange,  all  inter- 
national obligations,  may  be  made  more  useful  and 
helpful  by  being  in  accord  with  the  principles  upon 
which  Christ's  kingdom  is  founded  and  administered. 


1 62  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

It  is  a  function  of  missions,  hardly  appreciated  as 
yet,  that  they  are  to  elevate  the  standards  of  inter- 
national intercourse,  and  to  supply  the  elements  of 
sympathy,  gratitude,  unselfishness,  kindly  interest, 
helpful  ministry,  mutual  trust,  fair  treatment,  peaceful 
aims,  and  common  aspirations.  They  are  to  put  a 
Christian  temper  into  international  bonds,  just  as  the 
spirit  of  republican  institutions  forms  a  certain  tie  of 
sympathy  between  the  world's  republics  at  the  present 
moment.  There  is  something  in  the  attitude  of  the 
United  States  to  China  in  these  critical  times  which 
shadows  forth  what  is  meant  by  this  statement.  In 
spite  of  the  loud  but  ill-considered  criticism  of  missions 
which  was  manifested  at  the  time  of  the  Boxer  troubles, 
no  student  of  the  situation  can  fail  to  see  that  an  im- 
mense influence,  based  upon  expert  knowledge,  and 
governed  by  tolerant  and  just  views  of  the  situation, 
has  gone  forth  from  the  missionary  body,  on  the  whole 
decidedly  in  favour  of  fair  treatment  of  the  Chinese, 
and  in  deprecation  of  spoliation  and  aggression.  To 
be  sure,  missionaries  desire  that  a  proper  and  needful 
penalty  should  be  exacted  for  such  enormous  crimes 
as  were  committed  during  the  Boxer  outbreak  for  ex- 
ample, but  all  in  the  interest  of  justice  and  future 
security.  Almost  to  a  man  the  missionaries  stoutly 
protested  against  the  partition  of  China.  Intelligent 
Chinese  will  take  note  of  this,  and  it  will  not  be  for- 
gotten to  the  credit  of  Christian  missions  in  the  future. 
The  question  of  indemnity  to  missionaries  is,  in  passing, 
one  of  no  slight  difficulty,  in  which  there  is  room 
for  difference  of  opinion.  Those  who  have  been  the 
victims  of  wanton  and  cruel  outrage  would  hardly  be 
human  if  they  did  not  feel  that  some  recompense  was 


The  Appeal  of  Missions  to  the  Modern  Church    163 

due  them  from  a  guilty  government  which  has  trampled 
upon  their  rights,  and  refused  the  protection  which  it 
was  bound  to  give.  On  the  other  hand,  to  many  it 
may  seem  an  unworthy  thing  for  a  Christian  to  hand 
in  a  bill  of  damages  for  sufferings  and  losses  endured 
for  Christ's  sake,  and  in  the  discharge  of  voluntary 
service  at  a  post  of  duty.  If  the  Church  at  home  is  of 
this  mind,  would  it  not  be  an  ideal  attitude  of  sympathy 
and  generosity  for  it  to  offer  in  the  spirit  of  brother- 
hood to  help  the  missionary  bear  his  burden  ? 

There  are  other  and  more  important  considerations 
which  dignify  and  enforce  the  missionary  obligation 
upon  the  modern  Church.  It  is  an  age  of  unexampled 
facilities  for  service  throughout  the  world  ;  hard  and  dif- 
ficult pioneer  work  has  been  faithfully  done,  and  an  in- 
heritance of  open  doors  and  inviting  opportunities  is  both 
the  result  and  the  reward.  Nations  which  a  short  time 
ago  were  isolated,  inaccessible,  and  out  of  touch  with 
Christendom,  have  learned  much  concerning  the  out- 
side world.  Barriers  have  been  broken  down,  avenues 
of  influence  and  interchange  have  been  opened,  and 
East  and  West  have  been  drawn  together — not  without 
misunderstanding  and  friction,  but  on  the  whole  to  the 
advantage  of  both.  Evangelistic,  educational,  philan- 
thropic, and  cultural  agencies  have  been  established  in 
the  centres  of  unevangelized  races.  A  native  following, 
strong  and  aggressive,  with  the  enthusiasm  of  a  new 
hope,  and  the  courage  of  a  regnant  conviction  concern- 
ing the  possibility  of  better  things,  is  already  a  re- 
ligious and  social  factor  in  the  development  of  awakened 
nations.  The  Word  of  God,  wholly  or  in  part,  is  ready 
with  its  moulding  and  beneficent  influence,  in  over  five 
hundred  various  languages  and  dialects.     The  Spirit  of 


164  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

God  has  already  breathed  with  vitalizing  power  and 
gracious  benediction  on  the  missionary  toils  of  the  past 
century,  and  even  the  feeblest  faith  must  feel  cheer  and 
comfort  in  the  evidence  of  God's  strong  sanction  and 
support  to  the  efforts  of  His  Church  on  behalf  of  mis- 
sions. The  influence  of  missions  as  an  agency  for  the 
social  betterment  of  backward  races  has  become  a  con- 
spicuous feature  of  the  modern  call  of  missions,  and  is 
now  claiming  its  rightful  place  of  recognition  as  a  mis- 
sionary apologetic' 

Surely  there  is  something  sublime  and  inspiring,  as 
we  enter  upon  what  may  prove  to  be  one  of  the  most 
decisive  centuries  of  history,  in  this  discovery  of  the 
cooperation  of  God  with  His  people  in  a  work  which 
contains  at  once  the  secret  of  power  to  the  Church,  and 
of  redemption  to  the  world.  Ought  there  not  to  be  a 
deepening  of  conviction,  a  quickening  of  hope,  and  a 
vast  increment  of  courage  and  energy,  as  the  Christian 
Church  surveys  its  missionary  history,  and  recognizes 
its  present  opportunity  ? 

The  thoughtful  and  devout  mind  which  gives  this 
whole  subject  the  consideration  it  deserves  must  be  im- 
pressed with  the  amazing  import  of  the  growing  world 
environment  of  the  modern  Church.  It  gives  not  only 
a  new  emphasis  to  the  teachings  of  Scripture  concern- 
ing a  universal  kingdom,  but  it  presents  in  outline  an 
actual  object-lesson  of  the  possibility  of  Christ's  reign 
over  all  mankind. 

lrrhi9  aspect  of  the  subjeot  has  been  presented  at  length  by  the 
author  in  his  volumes  on  "Christian  Missions  and  Social  Progress," 
and  in  an  essay  in  a  volume  entitled  "Christ  and  Civilization," 
published  in  England  by  the  National  Council  of  Evangelical  Free 
Churches,  Memorial  Hall,  London. 


The  Appeal  of  Missions  to  the  Modern  Church    165 

There  is  nothing,  moreover,  which  makes  the  reali- 
zation of  Christian  unity  so  promising  in  our  day  as  the 
fellowship  of  practical  service  in  the  mission  fields, 
with  its  suggestions  of  generous  and  sympathetic  co- 
operation at  home.  It  really  seems  as  if  the  answer  to 
Christ's  prayer,  "  that  they  all  may  be  one,"  would 
reach  the  Church  in  its  earliest  and  most  effective 
practical  demonstration  through  that  broad  and  hearty 
spirit  of  fraternity  which  is  already  a  striking  feature 
of  evangelical  missions,  and  was  revealed  in  such  charm- 
ing and  winsome  aspects  at  the  recent  Edinburgh  Con- 
ference. It  did  not  strive  nor  cry,  nor  was  it  in  the 
least  obtrusive,  but  it  was  like  the  rustle  of  angel  wings 
in  those  great  audiences,  filling  the  halls  and  churches 
as  with  a  tender  thrill  of  music  to  which  Christian 
hearts  listened  in  happy  unconsciousness  of  anything 
but  fellowship  in  Christ,  and  common  joy  in  His 
service. 

Missionary  service  is  Christianity  in  a  glow,  giving 
out  its  light  and  heat,  its  brightness  and  its  power.  It 
is  Christian  love  in  action.  It  is  Christian  character 
"  putting  on  "  Christ,  and  going  about  doing  good.  It 
is  a  forgiven  soul  putting  reality  into  its  thanks  to  the 
Saviour.  It  is  a  soldier  of  the  Cross  obeying  orders. 
It  is  an  echo  of  the  glad  tidings  repeated  from  century 
to  century.  It  is  itself  the  saviour  of  salvation  from 
the  sneer  of  the  infidel,  the  redeemer  of  redemption 
from  the  criticism  of  the  sceptic,  the  vindicator  of  the 
Gospel  from  the  attacks  of  its  enemies,  the  defender  of 
the  Church  from  the  contempt  of  the  world.  These 
are  well-known  facts  of  Christian  experience,  but  let  us 
realize  that  the}'  were  never  more  emphatically  and 
urgently  true  than  they  are  to-day. 


166  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

The  world,  the  Church,  yes,  Christianity  herself, 
owes  a  large  debt  of  gratitude  to  this  humble  service. 
What  would  the  world  be  without  it  ?  "Where  would 
be  the  power  and  leading  of  the  Church  without  it  ? 
What  would  be  the  tone  and  temper  of  Christianity 
without  it  ?  It  triumphs  where  philosophies  fail ;  it 
advances  safely  and  easily  where  evidences  falter  and 
stumble  ;  it  produces  an  abundant  harvest  where  learn- 
ing and  eloquence  sow  in  vain ;  it  touches  the  heart 
and  uplifts  the  life  where  all  other  expedients  are 
futile.  It  is  still  as  ever,  only  with  higher  import 
than  before,  the  master  word  of  Christ  to  His  Church. 

The  difficulties  and  hindrances  which  at  times  arise, 
the  perils  and  sufferings  of  missionaries,  however 
deeply  they  may  stir  our  human  sympathies,  should 
no  more  be  allowed  to  abolish  or  even  obscure  the 
command  of  Christ  than  a  passing  cloud  should  be  re- 
garded as  the  extinction  of  the  sun.  God  is  testing 
His  people  to  see  if  they  are  true  to  the  central  purpose 
and  duty  of  the  Gospel ;  Christ  is  searching  the  heart 
of  His  Church  to  see  if  it  can  be  trusted  to  be  faithful 
to  its  supreme  commission.  He  has  often  done  this  in 
past  generations,  but  never  before  has  He  appealed  to 
the  spirit  of  loyalty  in  His  followers  when  it  was  easier 
for  the  Church  to  respond  unflinchingly  and  heartily 
than  now  ;  never  before  would  faltering  cowardice  and 
faint-hearted  instability  so  reveal  spiritual  weakness, 
and  be  more  unwelcome  to  Him  than  in  this  splendid 
hour  of  the  Church's  opportunity.  The  Great  Commis- 
sion is  doubly  great  to-day  with  a  new  urgency ;  it  is 
freshly  redolent  with  the  most  sacred  memories  of 
Christian  history,  and  it  speaks  the  mind  of  Christ 
under  conditions  which  give  it  an  unwonted  significance 


The  Appeal  of  Missions  to  the  Modern  Church    167 

to  the  Church,  and  which  would  make  its  neglect  on 
the  part  of  His  followers  a  disappointment  to  His 
heart  which  we  may  believe  would  be  deeper  and 
keener  than  any  He  has  experienced  since  He  ascended 
to  His  throne. 

In  tender  devotion  and  keen  enthusiasm  let  us 
dedicate  ourselves  anew  to  the  privilege  of  making 
Christ's  heart  known  to  all  mankind.  What  a  joyous 
and  exalted  mission  is  this — to  be  messengers  of  incarnate 
love  to  every  soul  on  earth !  What  an  honour  to  speak 
of  the  gentle,  sinless,  and  "  Crystal  Christ " — the  all- 
gracious  and  all-powerful  friend  of  our  human  race — to 
those  whom  He  came  to  redeem  and  glorify.  It  is  of 
Him  we  carry  the  glad  news. 

"  But  Thee,  but  Thee,  O  sovereign  Seer  of  time, 
But  Thee,  O  poets'  Poet,  Wisdom's  Tongue, 
But  Thee,  O  man's  best  Man,  O  love's  best  Love, 
O  perfect  life  in  perfect  labour  writ, 
O  all  men's  Comrade,  Servant,  King,  or  Priest, — 
What  if  or  yet,  what  mole,  what  flaw,  what  lapse, 
What  least  defect  or  shadow  of  defect, 
What  rumour  tattled  by  an  enemy, 
Of  inference  loose,  what  lack  of  grace 
Even  in  torture's  grasp,  or  sleep's,  or  death's, — 
Oh,  what  amiss  may  I  forgive  in  Thee, 
Jesus,  good  Paragon,  Thou  Crystal  Christ  %  " 


VIII 

The  Laymen's  Movement :  An  Interpretation 


Relatively,  the  laymen  have  not  had  as  large  a  part  in  the  missionary 
aspirations  of  our  Church  as  they  should  and  must  have,  if  we  are  to  meet 
this  situation.  It  requires  the  business  experience,  the  business  judg- 
ment, the  business  habits,  the  business  ability  of  the  man  occupied  in 
great  commercial,  industrial,  and  professional  enterprises.  We  must  have 
the  laymen,  and  if  we  are  going  to  have  an  enlargement  of  the  volume  of 
voluntary  service  we  must  have  these  men  to  make  this  spirit  contagious 
in  the  Church.  We  must  have  the  laymen — if  we  are  going  to  Chris- 
tianize the  impact  of  civilization  on  the  non-Christian  world.  The  min- 
isters alone  cannot  do  that — though  I  stand  second  to  none  in  my  ad- 
miration of  them — it  must  be  men  in  the  commercial  and  industrial 
worlds,  in  the  army  and  navy,  in  the  civil  service,  men  who  are  cruising 
over  the  world,  sending  representatives  over  the  world,  and  conducting 
enterprises  that  touch  the  ends  of  the  world.  They  only  can  Christianize 
this  impact.  And  then  we  must  have  the  laymen  for  the  influence  they 
must  have  on  what  I  may  call  the  laymen  of  the  non-Christian  nations. 
Every  non-Christian  religion  has  laymen,  also  holy  men ;  but  every 
traveller  and  missionary  here  will  agree  with  me  that  that  word  "  holy  " 
is,  generally  speaking,  a  misnomer,  and  the  laymen  of  the  non-Christian 
religions  have  come  to  associate  it  with  a  spurious  sort  of  religion — the 
opposite  of  the  word  holy.  Therefore,  when  the  missionary  comes,  they 
say,  "  Here  comes  a  professor,  a  man  paid  to  practise  religion."  But 
when  the  representatives  of  the  commercial  power  of  the  West,  with 
whom  they  associate  other  things,  come  among  them  commending  in 
their  dealings  and  example  the  teachings  of  Jesus  Christ,  it  presents  an 
irresistible  argument.  God  only  can  measure  the  power  of  one  Christ- 
like life. 

John  R.  Mott,  LL.  D. 


VIII 

THE  LAYMEN'S  MOVEMENT1 

An  hiterpretation 

THE  Laymen's  Missionary  Movement  is  with 
us.  It  is  making  good.  It  deserves  atten- 
tion ;  it  calls  for  interpretation. 
As  to  its  origin,  it  seems  to  have  been  conceived  in  a 
prayer-meeting  which  assembled  in  response  to  a  "  Call 
to  Prayer "  issued  by  a  small  group  of  laymen  in  at- 
tendance upon  the  convention  commemorative  of  the 
"  Haystack  Centennial."  which  was  held  in  the  Fifth 
Avenue  Presbyterian  Church,  New  York,  under  the 
auspices  of  the  Student  Volunteer  Movement,  on 
November  13  and  14,  1906.  The  prayer-meeting  to 
which  reference  has  been  made  was  held  in  the  chapel 
of  the  Fifth  Avenue  Church,  on  the  afternoon  of 
November  15,  1906,  and  was  attended  by  about 
seventy-five  laymen,  with  Dr.  Samuel  B.  Capen,  Presi- 
dent of  the  American  Board,  presiding.  The  afternoon 
meeting  was  almost  exclusively  a  prayer-meeting,  and 
its  spiritual  tone  was  one  of  inspiration  and  fervour, 
with  the  religious  needs  of  the  world  in  the  foreground. 
After  an  adjournment  at  six  o'clock,  an  evening  session 
was  held,  which  was  devoted  to  practical  plans  for 
calling  into  existence  a  Laymen's  Missionary  Move- 
ment. The  regular  "  Haystack  Centennial "  celebration 
had  been  held  about  a  month  previous,  at  Williams- 

1  The  New  York  Observer,  March  17,  1910. 
171 


172  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

town,  Massachusetts.  This  New  York  convention  was 
supplementary,  and,  as  we  have  indicated,  was  by  in- 
vitation of  the  Student  Volunteer  Movement. 

The  subsequent  prayer-meeting,  to  which  reference 
has  been  made,  seems  also  to  have  had  an  individual 
source  of  inspiration  which  should  not  be  overlooked. 
At  the  Student  Volunteer  Convention  held  at  Nash- 
ville in  the  spring  of  1906,  there  was  in  attendance  at 
that  gathering  the  late  John  B.  Sleman,  Jr.,  a  young 
business  man  of  "Washington,  D.  C,  and  in  the  mind  of 
this  young  man  the  idea  of  the  whole  Movement  seems 
to  have  lodged  at  the  time  of  that  convention,  as  he  was 
deeply  impressed  with  the  sight  of  over  three  thousand 
students  considering  their  duty  to  the  evangelization  of 
the  world.  His  mind  seemed  to  turn  to  the  great  body 
of  laymen  in  the  Churches,  and  the  thought  came  that 
if  this  immense  and  powerful  body  of  laymen  in  our 
Churches  could  see  the  world  and  study  it,  and  discover 
its  need,  and  feel  its  call,  as  this  great  mass  of  students 
seemed  to  be  doing,  what  added  power  and  what  prac- 
tical impetus  would  be  given  to  the  cause  of  foreign 
missions  !  Added  stimulus  was  given  to  these  thoughts 
in  connection  with  the  Student  Volunteer  ^Convention 
held  in  New  York,  commemorative  of  the  Centennial 
of  the  Haystack  meeting,  which  Mr.  Sleman  also  [at- 
tended. To  his  personal  influence  and  practical  plan- 
ning may  be  largely  traced  the  prayer-meeting  of  that 
stormy  afternoon,  November  15,  1906,  and  the  subse- 
quent resolutions  which  were  passed  in  the  evening, 
having  the  formation  of  the  Laymen's  Missionary 
Movement  in  view. 

The  preamble  adopted  that  evening,  after  referring 
to  the  providential  openings  of  the  times,  and  the  ef- 


The  Laymen's  Movement  173 

fective  help  which  might  be  rendered  by  an  interested 
lay  constituency,  resolved  upon  the  appointment  of  a 
Committee  of  Twenty-five  to  consult  with  the  secre- 
taries of  the  missionary  boards  of  all  the  denominations 
in  the  United  States  and  Canada,  with  reference  to  this 
projected  campaign  of  education  among  laymen,  and 
the  formation  of  a  Centennial  Commission  of  Laymen, 
possibly  fifty  or  more,  to  visit  as  early  as  possible  the 
mission  fields  of  the  world,  and  report  their  findings  to 
the  Church  at  home.  There  was  a  clause,  also,  in  the 
resolutions  looking  forward  to  the  formation  of  some 
comprehensive  plan  for  the  evangelization  of  the  world 
in  this  generation.  The  appointment  of  a  Central 
Committee  of  one  hundred  prominent  laymen,  with  an 
Executive  Committee  of  twenty-one,  was  arranged  sub- 
sequently, and  Mr.  J.  Campbell  White  was  appointed 
its  General  Secretary. 

The  proposed  consultation  with  the  Mission  Boards 
of  the  United  States  and  Canada  took  place  at  the  time 
of  the  annual  conference  of  secretaries  and  representa- 
tives of  the  various  Foreign  Mission  Boards  of  the 
United  States  and  Canada,  which  met  in  Philadelphia 
in  January,  1907,  and  the  project  was  warmly  received 
and  indorsed  by  resolutions,  the  purpose  of  which  was 
to  enlist  the  interest  and  support  of  the  boards  to  this 
Laymen's  Movement.  At  the  conference  of  secretaries 
in  Philadelphia  the  whole  project  was  introduced  by  an 
able  and  statesmanlike  address  by  Dr.  Samuel  B. 
Capen,  in  which  he  spoke  of  the  inadequacy  of  existing 
plans  and  methods  of  missionary  work,  and  of  the  in- 
difference to  foreign  missions  manifested  by  very  many, 
both  in  pews  and  pulpits ;  of  the  unexampled  oppor- 
tunities of  the  present,  and  of  the  spiritual  help  and 


1 74  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

safety  which  would  come  to  the  Church  itself  if  this 
duty  were  recognized  and  adequately  discharged.  He 
made  it  clear  that  the  proposed  Movement  did  not  con- 
template the  collection  and  administration  of  funds,  or 
the  sending  out  of  missionaries,  as  is  the  custom  with 
boards  and  societies.  It  was,  first  of  all,  an  inspira- 
tional movement  with  a  dynamic  purpose  ;  it  was,  next, 
a  missionary  movement ;  it  was,  also,  a  Laymen's  Mis- 
sionary Movement,  and  it  involved  incidentally  an  ef- 
fort to  secure  a  more  closely  affiliated  cooperation  in 
the  home  Churches  in  the  prosecution  of  missionary 
work.  It  was  thus  a  call  to  a  special  class — the  lay 
element,  the  business  men,  the  men  of  affairs  and  of 
practical  capacity,  in  the  Church,  to  interest  themselves 
in  the  foreign  missionary  enterprise,  and  to  cooperate 
more  earnestly  and  helpfully  in  support  of  the  regular 
missionary  agencies  of  the  various  denominations.  It 
contemplated  a  large  central  committee,  with  an  execu- 
tive selection,  and  still  further  organizations  in  the  de- 
nominational environment,  and  also  in  the  local  church 
and  community. 

The  appeal  of  Dr.  Capen  was  well  received,  and  the 
Business  Committee  of  the  Conference  of  Secretaries 
presented  a  series  of  resolutions  indorsing  the  purposes 
and  aims  of  the  Movement,  and  pledging  the  aid  of  the 
Conference  in  furthering  the  inception  and  establish- 
ment of  such  an  organization.  The  resolutions  of  the 
Conference  were  hearty,  and  full  of  the  spirit  of  aggres- 
sive cooperation.  The  Movement  was  thus  launched. 
A  delegation  visited  England  in  the  spring  of  1907,  in 
the  interests  of  its  extension  in  Great  Britain.  A 
national  convention  was  held  at  Toronto,  Canada,  in 
April,  1909,  as  a  culmination  of  various  scattered  meet- 


The  Laymen's  Movement  175 

ings  in  the  interests  of  the  Movement  held  during  the 
previous  months.  The  Toronto  convention  was  re- 
garded as  a  remarkable  gathering,  impressive  and 
quickening  to  a  marked  degree,  having  over  four  thou- 
sand delegates  in  attendance  from  every  part  of  the 
Dominion.  Following  this  successful  effort  in  Canada, 
extensive  and  elaborate  plans  were  made  for  a  similar 
campaign  in  the  United  States  during  the  winter  and 
spring  of  1909-1910. 

These  gigantic  plans  were  executed  in  seventy-five  or 
more  of  the  principal  cities  of  our  country.  In  city 
after  city  was  secured  the  cooperation  of  laymen  and 
business  men,  many  of  them  in  the  front  rank  of  citizen- 
ship, to  an  extent  which  is  surprising.  There  were 
brilliant  and  overflowing  dinner  tables,  and  long  even- 
ings devoted  to  addresses  on  foreign  missions.  Other 
meetings  followed,  and  these  most  unusual  gatherings 
enlisted  the  sympathy  and  awakened  the  interest  of  the 
lay  element  throughout  the  churches  of  the  city  where 
they  assembled.  The  eclat  and  audacity  of  the  ar- 
rangements in  Greater  New  York  are  still  fresh  in  our 
minds.  The  campaign  culminated  in  a  National  Mis- 
sionary Congress  in  Chicago  in  the  month  of  May,  1910, 
which  was  a  worthy  sequel. 

In  addition  to  this  original  interdenominational  Lay- 
men's Missionary  Movement,  there  are  at  least  twelve 
denominational  Laymen's  Missionary  Movements  which 
have  been  organized,  with  perhaps  more  to  follow. 
One  of  the  most  recent  and  representative  of  these  de- 
nominational movements  is  that  which  is  identified 
with  the  Protestant  Episcopal  Communion,  by  the 
formation  of  a  "Laymen's  Committee  of  One  Hun- 
dred," and  as  such  it  has  been  heartily  indorsed  by  the 


176  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

Board  of  Missions  of  that  Church.  A  Laymen's  Move- 
ment has  been  organized  in  Great  Britain,  and  there 
are  similar  movements  on  the  Continent  of  Europe  and 
in  Australia.  Mr.  J.  Campbell  White  has  epitomized 
the  Movement  as  follows :  "It  stands  for  investigation, 
agitation,  and  organization;  the  investigation  by  lay- 
men of  missionary  conditions ;  the  agitation  by  laymen 
of  an  adequate  missionary  policy  ;  and  the  organization 
of  laymen  to  cooperate  with  the  ministers  and  mission- 
ary boards  in  enlisting  the  whole  Church  in  its  supreme 
work  of  saving  the  world." 

A  still  further  and  supplemental  exposition  of  the 
significance  of  the  Movement,  and  its  prospective  influ- 
ence over  the  hearts  of  men  and  in  the  life  of  the 
Church,  issued  from  the  office  of  the  Movement,  may 
be  summarized  as  follows :  It  is  a  spiritual  challenge 
to  the  consciences  of  laymen,  and  to  the  activities  of 
the  Church ;  it  demands  great  things  ;  it  voices  a  call 
of  God  addressed  to  lay  stewardship ;  it  presents  a  large 
programme  of  service,  not  simply  for  the  man  who  is 
nearest  to  us,  but  for  the  man  who  is  farthest  away. 
It  directs  attention  to  the  urgent  problem  of  a  fallen 
world ;  it  contemplates  the  redemption  of  mankind. 
It  is  sufficient,  moreover,  to  satisfy  the  deepest  spiritual 
ambitions  of  men,  if  they  are  dissatisfied  (as  many  are) 
with  the  permanent  outlook  and  output  of  their  lives. 
Attention  is  turned  to  the  great  purpose  of  the  ages, 
which  has  enlisted  the  love  of  God  and  the  sacrifice  of 
Christ.  It  is  at  once  alluring  and  inspiring,  and  it 
promises  the  sweetest  and  most  priceless  rewards.  In 
its  reflex  influence  it  presents  the  speediest  and  surest 
method  of  saving  the  Church,  and  reinforcing  Christi- 
anity itself.     In  it  is  the  hope  of  salvation  from  formal- 


The  Laymen's  Movement  177 

isrn,  from  materialism,  from  rationalism,  from  selfish- 
ness, from  worldliness,  and  from  spiritual  deadness  and 
indifference.  It  holds  a  brief  such  as  apparently  no 
other  plan  suggests  for  cultivating  the  spirit  of  unity 
and  brotherly  cooperation  in  the  universal  Church. 
Men  of  all  the  Churches  are  cooperating  heartily,  sym- 
pathetically, and  with  a  glow  of  friendly  freedom  and 
fraternal  association  which  not  many  years  ago  would 
hardly  have  been  anticipated. 

The  whole  argument  is  being  driven  home  not  only 
to  the  conscience  and  intelligence  of  the  individual  lay- 
man, but  it  is  being  applied  also  with  ringing  emphasis 
to  the  national  conscience.  What  is  America's  share  in 
the  evangelization  of  the  world  is  one  of  the  pertinent 
questions  that  is  being  asked  and  answered  at  these 
Laymen's  Conventions.  The  foreign  missionary  re- 
sources of  this  Christian  country  are  being  overhauled 
and  investigated,  and  marshalled  anew.  The  manhood 
of  American  Christians  is  being  appealed  to.  It  is  a 
campaign  of  serious  education  and  practical  stimulus  to 
lift  this  great  duty  of  missions  to  a  place  of  dignity  and 
honour  and  business  devotion  such  as  it  has  never  occu- 
pied before  in  the  estimation  of  the  entire  Church. 

In  view  of  these  developments  in  our  contemporary 
religious  life,  we  naturally  question  ourselves,  and  we 
also  turn  to  scrutinize  the  facts  themselves,  in  search  of 
an  interpretation  which  gives  us  a  sufficient  and  reason- 
able explanation — if  possible,  an  interpretation  which 
stands  for  what  Providence  means  by  it  all.  Is  this 
indeed  a  day  of  visitation  ?  Is  this  the  Spirit  speaking 
to  the  Churches,  not  of  Asia,  but  of  our  own  America  ? 
And  is  this  the  Providence  of  God  working  in  the  in- 
terests of  the  kingdom  in  this  present  year  of  grace  ? 


178  The  Modem  Call  of  Missions 

1.  The  first  response  which  suggests  itself  to  our 
minds  in  view  of  this  large  interrogation  point  is  this  : 
The  Laymen's  Missionary  Movement  is  a  present-day 
revival  of  religion.  It  is  not  the  old-time  revival  such 
as  we  have  known  in  past  generations,  and  which  has 
now  become  largely  a  historic  memory  in  the  experi- 
ence of  the  Church,  but,  nevertheless,  may  it  not  be 
regarded  as  a  revival  in  an  up-to-date  environment, 
having  a  mission  of  stimulus,  instruction,  and  finely- 
adjusted  impact  upon  the  feelings  and  spiritual  capaci- 
ties of  a  powerful  element  in  the  working  forces  of  the 
Church  of  to-day  ?  "Why  may  not  this  stir  among  the 
laymen,  this  arrested  attention,  this  serious  and  intense 
fixing  of  the  mind  and  heart  upon  one  of  the  most 
easily  ignored  aspects  of  a  full  and  rounded  service,  be 
the  worthy  equivalent  of  the  old-time  revival  ?  At  first 
sight,  perhaps,  it  is  difficult  for  us  to  discover  the  secret 
links  and  the  hidden  bonds  of  sympathy  which  justify 
such  an  association.  Our  memory  of  the  revival  we 
have  known  in  former  years  is  full  of  gratitude  and 
reverence ;  nevertheless,  it  seems  a  misfit  when  we  try 
to  adjust  it  to  the  present  movement.  The  methods 
and  the  processes  are  so  different ;  the  aims  have  little 
in  common,  and  the  results  sought  are  in  two  quite 
separated  spheres  of  experience ;  yet  we  must  not  ig- 
nore points  of  similarity.  Both  have  to  do  with  relig- 
ion ;  both  represent  devotion  to  Christ  and  loyalty  to 
His  commands.  The  spirit  and  purpose  of  both  are 
redemptive. 

The  revival  of  the  past,  to  be  sure,  was  concerned 
more  exclusively  with  the  interests  of  the  individual  soul 
and  its  personal  relation  to  Christ  as  a  Saviour,  while 
the  Movement  of  the  present  seems  to  assume  such  a 


The  Laymen's  Movement  179 

relation  as  already  existing,  and  brings  its  renewing 
and  invigorating  force  to  bear  upon  the  duty  of  service 
— service,  it  may  be  noted,  in  a  large  and  extended 
aspect  of  its  scope  and  significance.  The  revival  of  the 
past  seemed  to  have  in  view  primarily  the  reinforce- 
ment of  the  local  churches,  its  culmination  being  found 
in  an  eager  crowd  thronging  around  the  communion 
table,  giving  themselves  in  loving  allegiance  to  visible 
membership  in  Christ's  Church.  The  Movement  of  the 
present  addresses  the  minds  of  Christian  men  of  affairs, 
of  business  capacity  and  energetic  habits,  men  who  are 
in  the  rush  and  whirl  of  modern  life,  as  a  rule  profess- 
ing Christians,  having  the  vows  of  consecration  upon 
them,  and  their  attention  is  called  to  a  sphere  of  cosmo- 
politan service  which  has  been  aptly  named  a  "  man's 
job,"  which,  moreover,  in  its  motives  and  scope  is  con- 
fessedly one  of  the  most  staggering  appeals  which  can 
be  made  to  the  Christian  consciousness  of  the  average 
man. 

It  is  not  simply  the  urgent  pressure  to  grapple  with 
pitiful  and  scandalous,  and  threatening,  social  condi- 
tions in  our  own  immediate  environment ;  it  is  a  sum- 
mons to  the  great  arena  of  world-wide  and  age-long 
conflict  with  ignorance,  degradation,  sin,  and  moral 
and  social  disorder,  as  they  exist  in  distant  lands,  and 
among  alien  races ;  yet  races  for  whose  redemption 
Christ  died.  The  individualistic  aspect  and  claim  seem 
lost ;  the  social  appeal  so  popular  at  present  seems  to  be 
expanded  and  attenuated  until  it  almost  disappears  in 
vague  idealism ;  yet  it  is  a  fair  question  whether  the 
grip  of  this  unusual  revival  appeal  upon  the  hearts  and 
minds  of  the  men  of  to-day — all  things  considered — is 
not  as  realistic,  as  powerful,  and  as  spiritually  authentic, 


180  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

as  any  which  old-time  revivals  can  show,  and  its  prom- 
ise to  the  Church,  moreover,  quite  as  hopeful  and  as 
helpful.  Are  we  not  justified  in  tracing  such  a  phenom- 
enon directly  to  the  Spirit  of  God,  awakening  and  re- 
viving the  dormant  energies  of  the  powerful  and  re- 
sourceful lay  element  in  our  Churches,  and  giving  it  an 
impulse  of  devotion,  a  quickening  of  loyalty,  and  a 
vision  of  service,  which  is  just  now  as  valuable  and  help- 
ful to  the  prospects  of  a  somewhat  harassed  Christianity 
as  the  old-time  revival  would  be  ? 

There  is,  to  be  sure,  something  very  unusual  in  the 
machinery  employed.  What  have  thronged  dinner- 
tables,  at  fashionable  hotels  or  palatial  clubs,  with  men 
in  dress-suits,  to  do  with  the  redemption  of  the  world  ? 
Is  there  not  something  spectacular  in  mass-meetings  in 
the  most  spacious  resorts,  in  the  Hippodromes  of  the 
gay  world,  to  consider  the  mission  of  Christ's  religion 
to  distant  races  ?  Is  there  not  something  which  gives 
us  pause  in  registration  for  missionary  purposes  at  so 
much  a  head,  and  dinners  at  so  much  a  cover  ?  When 
we  [come,  however,  to  addresses  by  distinguished  lay- 
men from  all  parts  of  the  country,  Christian  men  who 
speak  out  of  inspired  hearts,  brainy  men,  who  know  the 
world,  and  who  are  eminent  students  of  human  affairs, 
and  who  do  it  all  in  the  service  of  our  common  Lord, 
we  feel  that  we  are  on  more  familiar  ground.  Never- 
theless, all  this  as  a  continuous  performance,  from  city 
to  city  throughout  the  land,  is  something  new  and 
significant.  We  ask  ourselves,  is  this  God's  way  of 
reaching  His  Church  in  our  time,  and  calling  the  Chris- 
tian forces  of  our]  modern  life  to  a  more  effective  wit- 
nessing for  Him  in  our  age  ?  It  is  surely  a  stimulus  to 
a  more  catholic  life  for  the  Christian  consciousness  of 


The  Laymen's  Movement  18 1 

the  day  ;  a  call  to  a  more  comprehensive  usefulness  ;  a 
step  toward  a  more  complete  vindication  of  the  mis 
sion  of  the  Church  in  the  world.  It  leads  inevitably 
to  the  attainment  of  a  more  unassailable  status  on  the 
part  of  the  Church  in  the  eyes  of  the  world,  to  a  life 
attuned  more  perfectly  to  the  purpose  of  God  in  es- 
tablishing and  commissioning  His  Church,  and  to  a 
more  adequate  recognition  of  the  supreme  and  out- 
reaching  religious  responsibilities  of  our  times.  If 
successful,  it  will  be,  it  must  be,  the  redemption  of  the 
Church  from  the  dangers  of  narrowness,  provincialism, 
trivial  worldliness,  sordid  materialism,  self-centred  ac- 
tivities, and  pitiful  forgetfulness  of  her  supreme  duty 
and  destiny. 

2.  A  second  remark  which  seems  to  be  justified  in 
the  effort  to  interpret  the  mind  of  the  Spirit  in  the 
Movement  we  are  discussing  is  that  it  stands  for  an  es- 
sentially sound  and  valuable  feature  of  Church  life  and 
progress.  We  mean  the  responsibility  of  the  lay  ele- 
ment, and  the  necessity  for  its  active  cooperation  in  the 
fulfillment  of  the  mission  of  the  Church.  It  is  a  call  to 
the  average  man  of  the  Christian  ranks  to  see  his  com- 
plete duty,  and  realize  his  full  responsibility  as  a  factor 
in  Church  life,  and  a  servant  in  Christ's  kingdom.  This 
is  not,  strictly  speaking,  anything  new  in  the  history  of 
the  Church,  nor  does  it  represent  any  radical  change  or 
advanced  programme  in  Church  activity.  The  function 
of  the  laity  is  a  commonplace  of  Church  history,  and 
their  active  participation  in  the  service  of  the  Church  is 
centuries  old. 

Perhaps,  however,  it  had  grown  somewhat  lax  and 
cold,  and  there  had  come  to  be  some  semblance  of 
truth  in  the  statement  that  the  Church  was  losing  its 


182  The  Modem  Call  of  Missions 

hold  on  the  men  of  to-day.  To  this  disparaging  re« 
mark  the  uprising  of  the  laymen  as  we  now  behold  it  is 
a  sufficient  answer.  This  Laymen's  Movement  is  a  rally 
for  the  Church  itself,  and  for  a  cause  which  is  con- 
spicuously a  Church  enterprise.  The  Church,  instead  of 
being  ignored  and  counted  a  back  number,  is  receiving 
pledges  of  enthusiastic  support  in  the  discharge  of  what 
is  one  of  its  acknowledged  specialties,  although  often 
regarded  as  its  least  interesting  and  least  compelling 
duty.  In  this  respect  also  the  present  Movement  may 
be  regarded  as  a  revival  of  an  interesting  feature  of 
Church  history,  for  we  can  trace  a  Laymen's  Mission- 
ary Movement  in  the  sphere  of  universal  missions  all 
through  the  past  century.  A  long  and  continuous  list 
of  distinguished  names  of  lay  friends  and  supporters  of 
missions  could  be  compiled  from  the  beginning  of  the 
nineteenth  century,  when  the  ministry  itself  was 
apathetic,  extending  to  the  present  hour.  The  names 
of  Charles  Grant,  William  Wilberforce,  Charles  Simeon, 
and  Henry  Venn  will  occur  to  us,  and  through  shining 
ranks  of  men  like  Lord  John  and  Sir  Henry  Lawrence, 
Sir  Herbert  Edwardes,  Sir  William  Muir,  Sir  Charles 
Wood,  Sir  Charles  Elliott,  Sir  Bartle  Frere,  Sir  Kobert 
Hart,  Lord  Kinnaird,  Lord  Overtoun,  and  many  others, 
we  come  in  our  day  to  men  like  John  W.  Foster,  Sir 
Andrew  Fraser,  Sir  John  H.  Kennaway,  Lord  Balfour 
of  Burleigh,  Admiral  Mahan,  Sir  Harry  Johnston,  Sir 
Albert  Spicer,  Seth  Low,  R.  L.  Stevenson,  Dr.  George 
Smith,  and  Ambassadors  Bryce,  Durand,  Denby,  Con- 
ger, King,  and  Satow,  until  we  reach  our  own  circle  of 
friends  in  Dr.  John  R.  Mott,  Dr.  Robert  E.  Speer, 
Dr.  S.  B.  Capen,  Mr.  John  S.  Kennedy,  Mr.  Louis  H. 
Severance,  Mr.  George  W.  Pepper,  Mr.  J.  Campbell 


The  Laymen's  Movement  183 

White,  and  Mr.  J.  H.  Oldham,  and,  finally,  our  recent 
Presidents — Harrison,  McKinley,  Roosevelt,  and  Taf t. 
A  stimulating  volume  has  been  published,  by  Mr. 
William  T.  Ellis,  entitled  "  Men  and  Missions,"  dealing 
in  general  with  the  appeal  of  missions  to  Christian  man- 
hood, and  their  call  to  the  men  of  the  Church.  In  it 
he  has  a  suggestive  chapter  on  some  aspects  of  modern 
missions  which  appeal  especially  to  men.  This  Lay 
Movement,  then,  is,  after  all,  to  be  classed  as  a  revival. 
3.  May  we  not  further  interpret  the  Movement, 
under  the  direction  of  God's  Spirit,  as  in  the  interests 
of  the  revival  of  the  long-obscured  ideal  of  Christian 
unity  ?  We  have  come  to  look  at  formal  organic  unity 
as  impossible  at  present,  and  perhaps  not  desirable. 
All  efforts  in  that  direction  seem  to  be  futile.  No 
amount  of  argument,  or  historical  proof,  or  Biblical 
exegesis,  seems  to  be  able  to  give  the  Universal  Church 
any  perceptible  impulse  in  that  direction,  but  it  is 
manifest  that  the  inspiration  of  the  Laymen's  Mission- 
ary Movement  is  influential  in  fostering  a  spirit  of 
brotherhood  and  interdenominational  cooperation. 
Much  progress  has  confessedly  been  made  along  these 
lines  of  least  resistance,  which  leads  us  to  a  spontaneous 
and  hearty,  as  well  as  joyous,  fellowship,  in  striving  to 
fulfill  what  we  all  recognize  as  the  undoubted  desire 
and  purpose  of  our  common  Master.  The  way  in 
which  denominationalism  becomes  a  negligible  quantity 
in  the  gatherings  of  the  Laymen's  Missionary  Move- 
ment is  very  noticeable,  and  the  laity  as  a  body  seem 
to  like  it,  and  wish  for  more  of  it.  Churches  which 
have  found  it  difficult  in  the  past  to  come  into  hearty 
and  sympathetic  fellowship  are  all,  as  it  were,  of  one 
mind,  and  practically  in  one  place,  in  this  matter  of 


184  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

the  present  missionary  uprising.  Presbyterian,  Baptist, 
Methodist,  Reformed,  Congregational,  Protestant  Epis- 
copal, and  Anglican  communions  have  all  embraced 
this  project  of  the  Laymen's  Movement.  In  many 
lands  there  are  gatherings  of  men  of  the  various 
Churches  in  international  brotherhood,  under  the 
inspiration  of  a  common  desire,  a  common  hope,  and 
a  united  purpose.  This  is  all  enlarging  to  the  spiritual 
life,  and  widening  to  the  vision,  and  we  look  forward 
with  interest  and  expectation  to  results  both  of  ideal 
and  of  practical  value.  A  diligent  effort  will  no  doubt 
be  put  forth  to  conserve  the  fruitage  of  the  Movement, 
and  conduct  it  into  channels  of  permanent  usefulness. 
The  financial  outcome  already  represents  enlarged 
receipts  and  forward  movements  in  the  mission  fields. 
There  can  be  hardly  any  doubt  that  there  is  a  spiritual 
backing  and  a  providential  significance  to  the  Move- 
ment, which  it  would  be  sheer  folly  and  disastrous 
neglect  in  the  Christian  Church  to  ignore.  The  mani- 
fest duty  of  the  religious  leadership  of  our  day  is  to 
foster,  to  conserve,  and  to  use  this  Movement  in  the 
interests  of  a  great  advance  into  a  new  era  of  mission- 
ary enthusiasm  and  consecration. 


IX 

Union  Movements  in  Mission  Fields :  A 
Survey  of  Recent  Achievements 


The  problem  of  reunion  in  the  mission  field  differs  in  one  important 
respect  from  that  in  England.  We  are  in  a  new  country,  and  can  lay 
aside  convention.  This  means  that  we  may  agree  to  make  experiments 
such  as  would  be  of  doubtful  expediency  under  other  conditions.  These 
experiments  are  not  finally  binding.  They  are  subject  to  revision. 
Their  importance,  however,  is  enormous.  They  help  us  to  get  out  of  the 
rut,  and  when  we  find  the  wheels  begin  to  move  forward  it  is  often 
astonishing  to  see  how  far  we  can  go  in  common  without  sacrifice  of 
principle.     .     .     . 

We  make  the  venture  of  faith,  trusting  each  other  as  brother  Christians. 
We  know  all  the  while  on  both  sides  that  it  is  quite  possible  that  in  the 
end  we  shall  have  to  retrace  our  steps,  and  the  experiment  of  "  practical 
union  "  will  prove  a  failure.  But,  on  the  other  hand,  we  trust  that  it  may 
be  a  success.     .     . 

It  may  be  said  by  those  who  stay  at  home  that  all  this  is  too  "  ad- 
venturous." But  what  is  all  missionary  work  except  one  great  adventure  ? 
And  does  not  adventure  very  often  spell  faith  in  God  ? 

At  least,  that  is  how  I  read  the  Acts  of  the  Apostles,  the  most  "  ad- 
venturous" book  in  the  whole  Bible.  What  were  St.  Peter  and  St.  Paul 
doing  all  the  while  but  making  ventures  ?  The  Gentiles  might  not  have 
been  admitted  to  baptism  to  this  day  if  St.  Peter  had  not  made  the  great 
venture  and  baptized  Cornelius.  And  I  have  no  doubt  those  who  were 
staying  at  home  in  Jerusalem  thought  the  experiment  far  too  risky,  and 
talked  about  principles  being  compromised.  But  the  great  work  of  the 
Church  went  forward  all  the  same. 

The  Rev.  C.  F.  Andrews,  M.  A., 
Missionary  of  the  S.  P.  G.,  Delhi,  India. 


IX 

UNION  MOVEMENTS  IN  MISSION  FIELDS ■ 

A  Survey  of  Recent  Achievements 

THE  note  of  unity  which  is  sounding  so  sweetly 
and  impressively  throughout  the  Churches  of 
Christendom,  and  which  found  notable  utter- 
ance in  the  Pan- Anglican  and  Lambeth  Conferences  of 
190S,  has  come  to  us  in  its  most  alluring  and  irresistible 
tones  from  distant  fields  across  the  seas,  where  mes- 
sengers from  our  home  Churches  have  touched  hands 
and  hearts  in  the  service  of  our  common  Lord.  The 
movement  toward  a  more  effective  practical  brother- 
hood has  confessedly  received  its  present  emphasis 
largely  through  this  fraternal  rapprochement  in  mis- 
sionary circles.  It  becomes  then  a  fair  question  whether 
the  ardent  trend  of  feeling  in  that  direction  among 
missionaries,  and  the  decisive — even  unprecedented — 
action  taken  in  several  instances  have  not  given  an 
appreciable  impulse  to  the  growing  tendencies  toward 
unity  now  apparent  in  the  home  Churches. 

This  desire  for  closer  fellowship  and  more  united 
service  abroad  has  no  doubt  been  prompted  by  the 
Spirit  of  God,  yet  there  is  evidently  much  in  the  ev- 
vironment  and  circumstances  of  the  missionary  which 
would  give  special  urgency  and  attractiveness  to  the 
call  for  union  movements.  The  isolation  of  mission 
fields,  the  loneliness  of  the  struggle  with  entrenched 

1TJie  Congregationalist,  November  4,  1905. 
187 


188  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

evil,  the  urgent  call  for  cooperation,  the  natural  ac- 
centuation of  the  already  existing  agreement  in  essen- 
tials, the  absence  of  the  historic  sources  of  differentiation, 
the  preciousness  of  conscious  oneness  in  Christ  in  the 
face  of  almost  universal  hostility  to  Christianity,  and 
the  waning  power  of  the  old  denominational  exclusive- 
ness,  all  combine  to  give  a  peculiar  charm  and  a 
spontaneous  incentive  to  movements  in  the  foreign 
fields  for  a  closer  alliance  in  fellowship  and  work. 

It  was  a  significant  sign  of  a  coming  revolution  in 
ecclesiastical  traditions  when  Bishop  Whitehead  and 
other  Anglican  brethren  participated  in  the  General 
Missionary  Conference  at  Madras,  in  1902,  and  when 
representatives  of  both  English  and  American  episco- 
pacy entered  so  heartily  into  the  deliberations,  and 
joined  so  "unreservedly  in  the  "striking  official  deliver- 
ances of  the  Conference  at  Shanghai,  in  1907.  There 
is  surely  a  happy  significance  in  the  appearance  in 
The  East  and  the  West,  a  missionary  review  pub- 
lished under  the  auspices  of  the  Society  for  the  Propa- 
gation of  the  Gospel,  of  such  an  article  on  "  The 
Comity  of  Missions  in  China,"  as  was  printed  in  April, 
1908,  from  the  pen  of  the  Rev.  F.  L.  Norris,  of  the 
Church  Missionary  Society,  at  Peking.  The  Edinburgh 
Conference  of  1910  gave  a  decisive  and  unprecedented 
impulse  to  fellowship  and  cooperation,  so  significant  in 
its  purport  as  to  be  representative  of  a  new  era  in 
Church  history. 

The  invitation  recently  issued  by  a  Commission  ap- 
pointed by  the  General  Convention  of  the  Protestant 
Episcopal  Church  for  a  "  World  Conference  on  Faith 
and  Order  "  is  meeting  with  a  response  which  promises 
results  of  value.     It  is  a  somewhat  venturesome  pro- 


Union  Movements  in  Mission  Fields       189 

posal,  but  nevertheless  a  bold  and  sincere  move  in  the 
direction  of  large-hearted  brotherhood.  No  one  can 
forecast  the  issue  ;  it  is  not  unlikely  that  it  may  seem 
to  fail  in  the  full  consummation  of  ideals,  yet  in  the 
end  it  may  stand  for  substantial  progress  in  the  direc- 
tion of  the  goal  of  unity.  It  is  no  doubt  prompted  by 
the  conviction  that  schism  is  a  sin,  and  it  is  a  sin  be- 
cause Christ  has  prayed  for  unity,  and  the  Church  as 
His  ideal  Bride  should  be  one.  His  ,body  should  be 
whole,  not  torn  and  dismembered. 

The  trend  toward  unity  has  of  late  years  received 
formal  and  official  sanction  in  foreign  fields,  to  an  ex- 
tent which  is  phenomenal  in  the  history  of  the  Church. 
At  the  Triennial  Convention  of  the  English  Baptist 
missionaries  held  in  Calcutta  in  1907,  a  strong  appeal 
was  put  forth  in  the  interests  of  Cooperation  in  Mis- 
sion Work  in  India.  This  thoroughgoing  paper  is 
notable  because  of  its  unreserved  advocacy  of  union 
among  all  Protestant  Christians  in  India,  and  its  evident 
approval  of  the  establishment  of  one  indigenous  In- 
dian Christian  Church.  The  same  may  be  said  of  the 
more  recent  West  China  Missionary  Conference  at 
Chentu,  where  'numerous  missions  in  that  section  of 
the  empire  were  represented,  the  Conference  having 
"  adopted  without  a  dissentient  voice  the  ideal  of  one 
Protestant  Christian  Church  for  West  China." 

The  most  recent  move  for  a  united  ecclesiastical 
front  in  China,  although  we  trust  it  is  not  the  final 
word  on  Church  union  in  that  great  field,  is  the  forma- 
tion of  the  "  Chung  Hua  Sheng  Kung  Hui,"  the  Chi- 
nese equivalent  for  "The  Holy  Catholic  Church  in 
China."  It  represents  the  consolidation  of  the  churches 
of  the  Church  of  England  missions,  British  and  Cana- 


190  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

dian,  and  the  American  Episcopal  Mission,  into  one 
national  Church  for  China,  and  was  consummated  in 
St.  John's  Pro-Cathedral,  Shanghai,  April  26,  1912, 
by  the  constitution  of  the  General  Synod  of  the 
Church  in  China.  Almost  the  first  act  of  the  new  na- 
tional Synod  was  to  address  an  Open  Letter  of  frater- 
nal greeting  to  all  Christian  brethren  in  China,  em- 
phasizing the  irenic  spirit  in  which  the  new  Church  had 
been  formed,  and  expressing  the  hope  that  the  move 
may  ultimately  prove  helpful  in  the  direction  of  a 
wider  unity. 

The  Shanghai  Conference  of  1907  was  perhaps  the 
most  significant  forecast  of  this  now  dominant  desire 
for  unity  possessing  practically  all  the  denominational 
missions  in  China.  A  spontaneous  and  cordial  declara- 
tion, as  expressed  in  one  of  the  formal  resolutions  of 
that  Conference,  states  that,  "  We  gladly  recognize  our- 
selves as  already  one  body  in  Christ."  Of  special 
significance  was  the  unanimous  declaration  that  the 
goal  of  desire  for  China  was  "  to  plant  one  Church  un- 
der the  sole  control  of  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  governed 
by  the  Word  of  the  living  God,  and  led  by  His  guiding 
Spirit."  The  Chinese  Christians  are  largely  in  sym- 
pathy with  'this  aspiration,  increasingly  so,  as  recent 
movements  in  the  direction  of  unity  indicate.1    A  fur- 

1  We  rejoice  in  the  measure  of  unity  already  attained  by  the  Chris- 
tian forces  in  China,  and  in  their  ability  in  this  hour,  without  waste 
or  discord,  to  present  to  the  Chinese  people  the  one  faith  which  we  all 
hold,  and  the  one  Lord  whom  we  all  follow.  We  rejoice  that  so 
many  of  the  men  who  have  wrought  for  China  in  this  time  of  national 
need  have  been  Christian  men  who  have  borne  their  great  responsibili- 
ties with  Christian  fidelity,  and  sought  to  serve  their  country  with 
Christian  unselfishness.  With  a  Christian  Church  united  in  its  mis- 
sion, and  with  Christian  men  serving  the  State  in  patriotic  and  religious 


Union  Movements  in  Mission  Fields       191 

ther  and  definite  move  of  the  Shanghai  Conference  of 
1907  was  the  appointment  of  a  Committee  to  promote 
the  formation  of  federal  union  among  the  missions, 
under  the  title  of  "  The  Christian  Federation  of  China." 
The  method  recommended  and  authorized  was  the 
formation  of  provincial  councils,  made  up  of  both 
foreign  and  native  delegates  from  all  the  missions  in 
each  province,  these  councils  to  be  subsidiary  to  a  na- 
tional representative  council,  dedicated  to  the  support  of 
the  federation  idea.  In  many  of  the  prominent  prov- 
inces of  the  empire  these  councils  have  already  been 
constituted.  In  the  further  promotion  of  this  harmoni- 
ous cooperation,  at  the  happy  suggestion  of  the  Angli- 
can Conference  Committee  on  Unity,  a  Committee  of 
the  Conference  was  appointed  to  draw  up  a  form  of 
prayer  in  the  Chinese  language,  to  be  used  every  Sunday 
morning  in  all  the  Christian  congregations  of  China, 
appealing  to  "  Almighty  God  for  His  blessing  on  the 
empire  of  China,  and  the  Church  of  Christ  therein,  and 
for  the  unity  of  the  Church." 

The  Presbyterian  movement  toward  unity  in  China 
began  as  early  as  1862,  in  advance,  it  will  be  noted,  of 
any  action  even  in  Japan.  It  was  represented  at  that 
date  in  the  formation  of  a  single  presbytery  by  the 
missionaries  of  the  Presbyterian  Church  of  England  and 
the  Keformed  Church  in  America  stationed  at  Amoy. 
In  1891,  a  similar  union  took  place  in  Manchuria,  re- 
devotion,  we  believe  that  the  prayers  of  many  hearts  will  be  answered, 
that,  on  the  one  hand,  a  pure  and  unconfnsed  Gospel  may  be  preached 
to  the  nation,  and  that,  on  the  other  hand,  the  Christian  spirit,  un- 
mixed with  secular  misunderstanding  or  personal  ambition,  may  con- 
trol the  minds  of  the  men^who  are  to  bear  rule  and  authority  in  the 
new  day. — Robert  E.  Speer,  D.  D. 


1 92  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

suiting  in  the  formation  of  a  single  presbytery  by  the 
missionaries  of  the  United  Presbyterian  Church  of  Scot- 
land and  of  the  Presbyterian  Church  of  Ireland.  In 
1901,  a  Conference  of  Presbyterians  met  in  Shanghai, 
and  appointed  a  Committee  on  Presbyterian  Union. 
Under  the  auspices  of  this  Committee,  plans  for  the 
organization  of  "  The  Presbyterian  Church  of  Christ  in 
China"  were  formed,  the  Chinese  equivalent  being 
' '  Chung  K woh  Ki  Tu  Sheng  Kiao  Chang  Lao  Hui. ' '  The 
executive  functions  of  this  Committee  were  vested  in  a 
"  Council  of  the  Presbyterian  Church  of  Christ  in  China," 
until  such  time  as  a  General  Assembly  shall  be  formed. 
The  Council,  it  was  voted  in  1907,  was  to  be  recog- 
nized by  the  courts  of  the  United  Church  as  a  permanent 
"  bond  of  union,  peace,  correspondence,  and  mutual 
confidence."  The  resolutions  recording  the  findings 
and  official  records  of  this  Committee  are  of  historic 
interest,1  opening  the  door  as  they  do  for  a  wider  union, 
if  such  is  found  to  be  desirable  and  practicable.  The 
Presbyterian  missions  in  China,  including  their  native 
churches,  have  thus  become  practically  a  unit,  having 
been  formed  into  six  synods,  with  one  proposed  General 
Assembly. 

The  East  China  Baptist  Conference,  at  its  annual 
meeting  in  September,  1907,  passed  a  resolution  favour- 
ing the  closest  possible  union  of  all  the  Baptist  Churches 
in  the  empire.  The  Baptist  Sub-Committee  of  the 
Shanghai  Conference  Committee  on  Union  met  in  1908, 
and  outlined  its  programme  of  cooperation  within  the 
Baptist  communion  in  China,  stating  that  its  goal  was 
one  Baptist  denomination  among  the  Chinese  in  China, 

1  They  are  recorded  in  Vol.  II  of  the  World  Missionary  Conference 
Keport,  on  "  The  Churoh  in  the  Mission  Field,"  pp.  305-308. 


Union  Movements  in  Mission  Fields       193 

and  that  this  united  denomination  was  to  be  tree  to  form 
such  further  cooperation,  or  federation,  or  union,  with 
other  denominations  as  it  might  deem  best.  Lutheran 
missions  in  China  are  seeking  the  same  consummation, 
a  conference  of  members  of  the  Lutheran,  Berlin, 
Rhenish,  and  Basel  Missions  having  been  formed.  The 
trend  in  Methodist  missions  is  in  a  similar  direction,  a 
Standing  Committee  having  been  appointed  to  consider 
what  steps  can  be  taken  to  secure  a  United  Methodist 
Church  in  China.  The  problem  of  union  among  Con- 
gregationalists  in  such  a  vast  region  as  China  is 
attended  with  difficulty,  since  the  independent  status 
of  churches  does  not  afford  the  nexus  which  more  com- 
pact ecclesiastical  systems  furnish.  Different  Congre- 
gational missions  have,  however,  made  some  progress 
in  drawing  their  churches  together,  but  no  definite 
and  general  programme  of  union  is  as  yet  in  evidence. 
The  Anglican  and  Protestant  Episcopal  movement  for 
a  United  National  Church  for  China  has  been  noticed 
in  a  previous  paragraph. 

In  addition  to  these  efforts  in  the  interests  of  ecclesi- 
astical unity,  a  number  of  important  plans  of  educational 
federation  have  been  adopted  in  different  parts  of  the 
Chinese  Empire,  and  are  in  successful  operation.  The 
latest  and  perhaps  the  most  extensive  combination — 
the  West  China  Educational  Union,  formed  after  the 
model  of  the  North  China  Educational  Union — has 
arranged  not  only  for  the  united  supervision  and  stand- 
ardizing of  elementary  and  secondary  schools,  but  is 
planning  for  the  establishment  of  a  Chentu  Union 
University,  representing  the  following  group  of  missions 
in  Western  China  :  the  American  Baptist,  the  Methodist 
Episcopal,  the  Canadian  Methodist,  the  London  Society, 


j  94  The  Modem  Call  of  Missions 

the  China  Inland,  the  English  Friends,  and  the  Church 
Missionary  Society.  There  are  already  several  similar 
federated  educational  plants  in  different  sections  of 
China,  including  an  unusual  number  devoted  to  the 
training  of  evangelists  and  pastors.  The  Shantung 
Protestant  University  includes  within  its  scope  a  theo- 
logical college,  located  at  Tsingchowf u,  wherein  the  in- 
struction given  "shall  be  in  accordance  with  evangelical 
truth  as  commonly  believed  and  taught  in  the  Presbyte- 
rian Church  of  America  and  the  Baptist  Churches  of 
Great  Britain."  A  science  and  arts  college  and  a  med- 
ical school  are  included  in  this  union  scheme.  In  addi- 
tion, Union  Medical  Schools  are  established  at  Peking 
(where  there  are  two,  one  for  men  and  one  for  women), 
Moukden,  Nanking,  Canton,  Tsinanfu,  and  Wuchang, 
and  one  is  about  to  be  opened  at  Foochow. 

Theological  seminaries  under  the  auspices  of  united 
interdenominational  control  are  found  in  China,  to  the 
number  of  nine.  This  is  in  advance  of  all  other 
mission  fields.  Illustrations  are,  the  theological  col- 
lege (above  mentioned)  of  Shantung  Protestant  Uni- 
versity, known  as  the  Gotch-Robinson  Union  Theo- 
logical Seminary,  the  North  China  Union  College  of 
Theology  at  Peking,  the  Union  Theological  College  at 
Moukden,  the  Union  Theological  Seminary  at  Nanking, 
the  Union  Theological  School  at  Amoy,  the  Union 
Theological  Seminary  at  Canton  (Fati),  the  Theological 
College  of  the  Union  University  at  Chentu,  the  Union 
Theological  Seminary  at  Niekow  (near  Hankow),  and 
the  Union  Theological  Seminary  at  Kingchowfu.  The 
two  latter  represent  Lutheran  or  Scandinavian  cooper- 
ation. 

The  name  of  Wu-Han  University  has  been  given  to 


Union  Movements  in  Mission  Fields       195 

the  proposed  institution  which  (in  1908)  an  Oxford  and 
Cambridge  Committee,  representing  the  two  seats  of 
learning,  planned  to  found  as  a  Christian  university  in 
China.  The  Rev.  Lord  William  Gascoyne  Cecil  visited 
China  in  1909,  on  a  prospecting  and  consultative  tour, 
and  found  the  outlook  so  encouraging  for  an  educa- 
tional enterprise  of  such  magnitude  that  the  representa- 
tive character  of  the  Committee  was  widened,  and  its 
name  changed  to  United  Universities'  Committee,  with 
a  view  of  interesting  American,  Canadian,  and  other 
British  universities  in  the  scheme.  Separate  hostels 
under  the  direction  of  the  various  missions  will  be 
provided  to  serve  as  places  of  religious  instruction  and 
Christian  nurture.  Its  location  is  to  be  in  Central 
China,  probably  at  Wuchang  or  Hankow. 

Recent  "progress  in  India  shows  a  new  union  align- 
ment, and  is  notable  in  its  scope  and  significance.  A 
Presbyterian  Alliance  was  formed  in  1871,  which  held 
triennial  meetings,  until,  in  1901,  the  South  Indian 
United  Church  was  formed,  by  a  union  of  the  Arcot 
Mission  churches  with  those  of  the  United  Free  Church 
of  Scotland  in  Southern  India.  Subsequently,  in  unit- 
ing with  the  Presbyterian  Church  in  India,  this  body 
became  the  Synod  of  the  South  Indian  United  Church. 
In  1904,  at  Allahabad,  the  Presbyterian  Missions  and 
their  churches,  with  but  minor  exceptions,  coalesced  to 
form  one  Presbyterian  Church  in  India,  although  its 
geographical  scope  as  yet  is  confined  to  North  India. 
A  further  and  more  unreserved  commitment,  however, 
in  fraternal  alliance  is  represented  in  the  recent  forma- 
tion, under  a  new  and  larger  alignment,  of  the  South 
India  United  Church.  This  was  really  a  union  of 
unions,  being  a  combination  of  the  previously-formed 


196  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

alliance  of  Scotch  Presbyterian  and  Dutch  Reformed 
bodies,  with  the  united  Congregational  communities  of 
the  American  Board  and  the  London  Mission,  effected 
in  1905,  including  the  Indian  contingent  in  each  in- 
stance. It  was  consummated  in  1907.  The  South 
Indian  United  Church  formed  in  1901,  when  it  joined 
with  the  Presbyterian  Church  of  India  in  1904,  reserved 
to  itself  the  right  to  unite  in  a  larger  and  wider  union 
with  Churches  in  South  India  not  of  the  Presbyterian 
order,  if  the  way  opened  and  it  seemed  best  to  enter 
such  an  alliance.  The  merger  above  mentioned  form- 
ing the  South  India  United  Church  was  the  result. 
In  connection  with  this  unique  ecclesiastical  merger,  an 
irenic  but  thoroughly  evangelical  confession  of  faith 
was  adopted  by  the  United  Church,  representing  the 
vital  truths  held  in  common  by  the  uniting  Churches. 

The  resultant  product  of  this  comprehensive  union  of 
six  distinct  missions  presents  an  eclectic  and  elastic 
polity,  forming  a  system  of  government  which  lends 
itself  to  adjustment,  and  gives  liberty  within  the  bounds 
of  safety,  with  also  a  generous  intellectual  scope  in  its 
doctrinal  basis,  while  wholly  loyal  to  essential  Scripture 
truth,  and  proving  itself  at  the  same  time  to  be  full  of 
the  joyous  inspiration  of  unreserved  fellowship  in  Christ. 
The  South  India  United  Church  being  largely  indig- 
enous in  its  origin  and  membership,  has  awakened  in 
Indian  Christians  an  ardent  feeling  of  loyalty,  and  a 
devout  purpose  to  work  for  the  extension  of  Christ's 
kingdom  in  India.  Plans  have  been  under  considera- 
tion for  the  admission  of  the  churches  of  the  Rhenish 
and  Basel  missions  into  alliance  with  the  South  India 
United  Church. 

A  Union  Committee  of  the  Presbyterian  Church  in 


Union  Movements  in  Mission  Fields       197 

India  was  appointed  in  1906  to  correspond  with  other 
Churches,  with  a  view  to  a  more  extended  union  move- 
ment, but  this  correspondence  has  not  resulted  in  a  re- 
sponse which  would  justify  any  definite  move  for  organic 
union.  It  has,  however,  awakened  a  desire  for  the  for- 
mation of  a  Federation  of  Christian  Churches  in  India, 
which  was  formally  proposed  at  a  Conference  represent- 
ing the  Presbyterian,  Methodist,  and  Congregational 
Churches,  and  the  Friends'  Mission,  the  Christian  Mis- 
sion, and  the  Missionary  Alliance,  held  at  Jubbulpore, 
in  April,  1909.  Provincial  Federal  Councils  in  each 
province  or  great  language  area,  leading  up  to  the  for- 
mation of  a  National  Federal  Council,  were  formally 
proposed  in  the  Resolutions  of  the  Conference.1  The 
Federation  proposed  has  been  welcomed  by  the  South 
India  United  Church,  and  by  the  Presbyterian  Church 
in  India,  but  as  yet  Anglicans,  Lutherans,  and  Baptists 
have  not  participated  in  the  Federation  Movement  in 
India.  The  Lutheran  Missions  held  their  first  All-India 
Lutheran  Conference  at  Kodaikanal  in  1905  ;  a  second 
followed  in  1909,  at  Guntur,  and  a  third  was  appointed 
to  assemble  in  1912.  Proposals  and  plans  for  coopera- 
tion were  heartily  endorsed,  and  the  desire  that  a  more 
perfect  union  might  come  in  the  future  was  evidently 
an  ideal  cherished  for  the  Lutheran  Churches  in  India. 
Baptist  Missions  in  India  are  planning  the  formation 
of  a  Baptist  Union,  but  as  yet  no  definite  and  final 
action  has  been  taken. 

This  harmonious  combination  of  ecclesiastical  inter- 
ests has  its  counterpart  also  in  the  sphere  of  missionary 
education.     A  recent  illustration  is  the  union  of  the 

1  The  Resolutions  of  the  Jubbulpore  Conference  are  found  in 
Vol.  VIII  of  the  Edinburgh  Conference  Report,  pp.  174-177. 


l  g8  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

educational  plants  of  the  United  Free  and  the  Estab- 
lished Church  of  Scotland  in  Calcutta,  under  the  title 
of  the  Scottish  Churches'  College,  including  also  the 
Scottish  Churches'  Collegiate  School,  and  not  only  that, 
but  the  union  of  the  two  missions  in  the  city,  under  the 
name  of  the  Scottish  Churches'  Mission,  Calcutta.  This 
is  a  step  in  advance  as  yet  of  the  status  in  Scotland 
itself,  but  the  ecclesiastical  suggestiveness  of  it  appears 
in  a  statement  in  one  of  the  missionary  papers  of  the 
United  Free  Church  of  Scotland,  to  the  effect  that 
"  the  healing  of  the  breaches,  which  has  begun  appro- 
priately in  the  mission  field  of  the  metropolis  of  India, 
must  yet  be  effected  in  the  mother  Churches  of  Scot- 
land." 

Cooperative  efforts  in  theological  education  have 
been  slow  in  India,  yet  a  recent  move  in  that  direction 
is  decisive  and  significant.  We  refer  to  the  opening, 
in  1911,  of  the  Union  Theological  College  at  Bangalore. 
The  cooperation  in  this  enterprise  represents  the  London, 
Arcot,  Madura,  Wesleyan,  and  United  Free  Church  of 
Scotland  Missions.  In  the  north  of  India  practical 
union  in  Presbyterian  mission  circles  for  purposes  of 
theological  training  has  been  secured,  by  the  adoption 
of  the  theological  school  of  the  American  Presbyterian 
Mission  at  Saharanpur  as  the  Theological  College  of 
the  Presbyterian  Church  in  India.  A  plan  for  a  great 
cooperative  Christian  University  at  Serampore,  with  a 
Theological  Department,  is  now  under  consideration, 
but  is  yet  in  an  inchoate  stage  of  progress. 

In  the  Japanese  Churches  the  practical  gains  in  the 
promotion  of  unity  have  been  striking  and  cumula- 
tive. The  Church  of  Christ  in  Japan  was  the  earliest 
(1877)   movement  toward  unity,   and  represents  the 


Union  Movements  in  Mission  Fields       199 

Reformed  and  Presbyterian  cults.  The  Nippon  Sei- 
Kokwai  illustrates  the  union  of  American  and  Anglican 
episcopacy.  The  Kumi-ai  Churches  stand  for  inde- 
pendency. The  Methodist  Church  of  Japan  was 
formed  in  1907  by  a  union  of  the  Methodist  bodies, 
and  was  until  recently  presided  over  by  the  late  Bishop 
Honda,  a  native  Japanese,  now  succeeded  by  Dr. 
Hiraiwa.  The  Lutheran  Churches  in  Japan  are  seek- 
ing a  similar  union. 

The  irenic  and  unifying  ministry  of  the  Standing 
Committee  of  Cooperating  Christian  Missions  in  Japan 
continued  its  active  and  useful  service  in  various  de- 
partments of  religious  work,  until,  in  1910,  by  a  change 
in  its  constitution  and  name,  it  became  the  "  Con- 
ference of  Federated  Missions  in  Japan."  It  was  at 
the  suggestion  of  this  Committee  that  plans  were 
formed  for  holding  a  Jubilee  Christian  Conference  in 
the  year  1909,  to  celebrate  the  fiftieth  anniversary  of 
the  opening  of  Christian  work  in  modern  Japan.  This 
Jubilee  Conference  represented  all  Christian  Churches 
and  evangelical  organizations  in  the  empire — a  united 
jubilee,  to  commemorate  the  entrance  of  the  blessed 
religion  of  the  one  "  Lord  and  Master  of  us  all "  among 
the  Japanese  people.  We  have  noted  the  "  Conference 
of  Federated  Missions  in  Japan,"  above  mentioned. 
There  has  been  lately  formed,  also,  the  "  League  for  the 
Promotion  of  the  Union  of  Christian  Churches,"  and  a 
"  Japanese  Church  Federation."  These  agencies  all 
point  to  the  growth  of  a  strong  union  sentiment  in 
Japan. 

Various  union  movements  in  education  have  followed 
the  ecclesiastical  alliances,  and  resulted  in  a  number  of 
fine  institutions  such  as  the  Meiji  Gakuin.     Denomina- 


200  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

tional  alliances  have  also  been  formed  in  theological 
training,  as  in  the  Meiji  Gakuin,  on  the  part  of  Presby- 
terian and  Dutch  Eeformed  Missions,  the  Aoyania 
Gakuin  on  the  part  of  the  American  and  Canadian 
Methodist  Missions,  and  the  Central  Theological  Col- 
lege at  Tokyo,  representing  the  Anglican  and  American 
Episcopal  Missions.  Plans  are  now  maturing  for  the 
founding  of  a  Christian  University. 

The  four  Presbyterian  Missions  established  in  Korea 
(or  Chosen,  as  the  Japanese  wish  it  to  be  called) — the 
American  Northern  and  Southern,  the  Australian,  and 
the  Canadian — united,  in  1907,  to  form  the  Presby- 
terian Church  in  Korea,  sinking  all  national  and 
ecclesiastical  divergencies  in  the  desire  to  have  but 
one  representative  Presbyterian  Church  in  all  Korea. 
Its  first  General  Assembly,  attended  by  over  200  min- 
isters and  elders,  met  at  Pyeng  Yang  in  September, 
1912.  The  Methodists,  morever,  have  united  with  the 
Presbyterian  Missions  in  organizing  a  General  Council 
of  Evangelical  Missions,  whose  ultimate  aim  will  be  to 
form  one  native  Christian  Church  in  Korea,  which, 
when  once  established,  will  perhaps  represent  one  of 
the  most  unreserved  approaches  toward  a  practical 
answer  to  our  Lord's  prayer  for  unity  which  has  been 
presented  in  the  annals  of  modern  Church  history. 
The  original  project  out  of  which  this  movement  has 
grown  contemplated  federation  only  in  the  educational 
work  of  Presbyterian  and  Methodist  Missions,  but  the 
deeper  and  broader  union  of  spiritual  forces  seemed 
to  arrest  the  attention  and  claim  the  suffrages  of 
the  assembled  missionaries,  and  this,  combined  with 
the  earnest  and  timely  advocacy  of  Bishop  Harris  of 
the  Methodist  Church,  resulted  finally  in  the  passing 


Union  Movements  in  Mission  Fields       201 

unanimously  of  a  resolution  that  "  the  time  has  come 
when  there  should  be  but  one  Protestant  Christian 
Church  in  Korea."  This  resolution,  however  significant 
its  import,  was  not  at  that  time  decisive ;  it  simply 
indicated  the  dominant  spirit  on  the  field,  and  will  be 
the  subject  of  further  consideration,  but,  unless  all 
signs  fail,  it  betokened  a  new  trend,  not  confined  to 
Korea  alone,  in  the  ecclesiastical  history  of  our  age. 

Did  space  permit,  something  further  might  be  said 
of  movements  in  South  Africa,  where,  in  1908,  dele- 
gates from  the  Presbyterian,  Congregational,  Wesleyan, 
Methodist,  Baptist,  and  Transvaal  "Wesleyan  Churches 
met  at  Johannesburg,  and  took  steps  to  formulate  the 
basis  of  a  United  Church.  In  East  Africa,  also,  a  con- 
ference representing  eight  societies  assembled  at  Nai- 
robi, in  1909,  and  appointed  a  committee  to  prepare  a 
basis  for  the  organization  of  a  United  Native  Church 
in  that  section  of  Africa.  In  British  Central  Africa 
the  Scotch  missionaries  of  the  Church  of  Scotland  and 
the  United  Free  Church  of  Scotland  are  endeavouring 
to  find  a  basis  of  union  into  a  Synod  of  the  Presbyterian 
Church  of  Central  Africa.  There  are  difficulties  which 
cannot  be  eliminated  hastily  or  by  force,  but  will  no 
doubt  disappear  if  the  respective  Churches  in  Scotland 
will  lead  the  way. 

In  the  New  Hebrides  the  Presbyterian  Churches  of 
Canada,  Scotland  (U.  F.  C),  New  Zealand,  New  South 
"Wales,  Yictoria,  South  Australia,  and  Tasmania,  have 
united  in  forming  the  "New  Hebrides  Presbyterian 
Mission  Synod."  Interesting  information  might  be 
given  about  evangelical  union  in  the  Philippines,  where 
an  "  Evangelical  Union  of  the  Philippine  Islands  "  has 
been  formed.     In   Syria  steps  have  just  been  taken 


202  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

(1911)  to  reorganize  the  work  of  theological  training, 
and  an  institution,  practically  interdenominational, 
will  open  at  Beirut  in  the  autumn  of  1912,  in  a  new 
building,  the  gift  of  Mr.  J.  Milton  Colton,  of  Jenkin- 
town,  Pennsylvania.  South  America  and  Mexico  re- 
veal also  the  stirrings  of  this  deep  passion  for  unity. 
Is  it  not  manifest  that  this  leadership  of  the  mission 
Churches  in  the  direction  of  a  united  Christendom  may 
be  taken  as  a  sign  that  our  foreign  missionary  efforts 
and  sacrifices  hold  in  store  a  rich  spiritual  reward  to 
the  Christian  Church  universal  ? 

In  the  sphere  of  the  preparation  of  a  Christian  litera- 
ture, plans  for  united  work  are  being  carried  out  in 
many  missions.  Numerous  conferences  of  a  widely  rep- 
resentative character  are  also  held  in  prominent  lields. 
Educational  and  medical  associations  have  been  formed 
in  China,  India,  and  elsewhere,  illustrating  a  spirit  of 
cooperation  and  mutual  helpfulness  which  knows  no 
denominational  lines.  The  Young  Men's  Christian  As- 
sociations, as  also  the  Young  Women's,  are  in  the  in- 
terest of  no  distinctive  ecclesiastical  propaganda,  but 
represent  a  noble  enthusiasm  for  Christianity,  as  the 
religion  which  leads  inevitably  to  higher  ideals  and 
better  living.  The  Bible  and  Tract  Societies  are  in 
spirit  and  aim  agencies  free  from  denominational  bias 
for  the  dissemination  of  Christian  truth,  the  enlighten- 
ment of  the  mind,  and  the  general  uplift  of  human 
society. 

On  this  genial,  hearty,  and  comprehensive  basis  of 
practical  cooperation  in  service  the  Churches  of  the 
foreign  mission  lields  are  coalescing  into  visible  unity. 
This  is  a  much  more  wholesome,  hopeful,  and  effective 
method  than  to  seek  to  reduce  confessional  statements 


Union  Movements  in  Mission  Fields       203 

to  harmony,  and  find  at  last  that  it  is  impossible  to  at- 
tain a  doctrinal  syncretism,  without  concessions  for 
which  all  hearts  are  not  yet  fully  prepared.  The  doc- 
trinal unity  will  no  doubt  come  in  time,  not  perhaps  in 
the  form  of  an  "  irreducible  minimum,"  but  rather  as 
a  higher  and  more  inclusive  maximum  of  love  and 
brotherhood  and  spiritual  insight,  consecrated  to  united 
and  loyal  service.  Indeed,  the  present  world  tour 
(1912-13)  of  Dr.  John  R.  Mott,  representing  the  Con- 
tinuation Committee,  seems  to  promise  results  of  ex- 
ceptional import  in  the  deepening  of  fraternal  ties,  and 
the  furtherance  of  brotherly  cooperation,  throughout 
the  foreign  mission  fields. 


X 

The  Hymnody  of  Modern  Missions 


And  He  hath  put  a  new  song  in  my  mouth,  even  praise  unto  our  God ; 
many  shall  see  it,  and  fear,  and  shall  trust  in  the  Lord. 

Deep  calleth  unto  deep  at  the  noise  of  Thy  waterspouts ;  all  Thy  waves 
and  Thy  billows  are  gone  over  me. 

Yet  the  Lord  will  command  His  loving  kindness  in  the  daytime,  and  in 
the  night  His  song  shall  be  with  me,  and  my  prayer  unto  the  God  of  my 
life. 

O  sing  unto  the  Lord  a  new  song ;  sing  unto  the  Lord,  all  the  earth. 
Sing  unto  the   Lord,  bless  His  name  ;  shew  forth  His  salvation  from 
day  to  day. 

O  sing  unto  the  Lord  a  new  song;  for  He  hath  done  marvellous 
things ;  His  right  hand,  and  His  holy  arm,  hath  gotten  Him  the  victory. 

Thy  statutes  have  been  my  songs  in  the  house  of  my  pilgrimage. 

Praise  ye  the  Lord.  Sing  unto  the  Lord  a  new  song,  and  His  praise  in 
the  congregation  of  saints. 

Let  the  word  of  Christ  dwell  in  you  richly  in  all  wisdom ;  teaching  and 
admonishing  one  another  in  psalms  and  hymns  and  spiritual  songs,  sing- 
ing with  grace  in  your  hearts  to  the  Lord. 

And  they  sing  the  song  of  Moses  the  servant  of  God,  and  the  song  of 
the  Lamb,  saying,  Great  and  marvellous  are  Thy  works,  Lord  God  Al- 
mighty ;  just  and  true  are  Thy  ways,  Thou  King  of  saints. 


X 

THE  HYMNODY  OF  MODERN  MISSIONS ' 

THE  hyinnography  of  foreign  missions  yields 
an  amount  of  material  to  the  credit  of  the 
hearts  and  brains  of  missionaries  which  is 
surprising  alike  in  its  richness  and  volume.  It  is  a 
tribute  to  the  devotional  element  in  missions  that  hymn- 
writing  is  almost,  if  not  quite,  as  distinct  a  feature  of 
their  work  as  Bible  translation  itself.  It  ranks  with 
prayer,  and  with  sermonic  and  catechetical  teaching,  as 
one  of  the  essential  characteristics  of  a  living  Church  of 
Christ.  Moreover,  the  Songs  of  Zion  are  not  reserved 
for  the  Church  alone  in  mission  fields ;  they  cheer  the 
home,  especially  during  the  devotional  hours  of  the 
household  ;  they  are  an  attractive  feature  of  the  school, 
where  they  are  memorized  as  well  as  sung ;  they  lend  a 
charm  to  social  gatherings,  and  relieve  the  monotony  of 
work  ;  while  they  often  have  a  place  in  public  functions 
in  which  the  Christian  element  predominates. 

It  is  said  that  the  women  of  Greenland  in  their  long 
coasting  voyages  row  to  the  rhythm  of  their  familiar 
hymns  ;  and  in  her  social  hours  with  the  Indian  women 
in  the  distant  northwest  of  Canada,  Mrs.  Bompas,  the 
wife  of  the  Bishop,  used  to  be  fond  of  singing  the  Cree 
versions  of  "  Hold  the  Fort,"  "  The  Sweet  By-and-By," 
"Nearer,  My  God,  to  Thee,"  and  "Jerusalem  the 
Golden."     In  the  orphan  asylums  of  India,  and  in  some 

1  The  Churchman,  May  26,  1906. 
207 


208  The  Modem  Call  of  Missions 

of  the  hospitals  of  China,  special  hymn-books  are  in 
use  which  have  been  compiled  with  a  view  to  the 
peculiar  needs  of  such  institutions. 

This  helpful  department  of  hymn-writing  is  one  in 
which  native  talent  has  been  conspicuous.  Charming 
original  hymns  have  been  produced  by  gifted  writers 
among  Christian  converts.  Jacob  Biswas  in  Bengali, 
Vedanayaga  Sastri  in  Tamil,  the  Rev.  Ganpatrao 
Navalkar  and  Mr.  K.  R.  Sangle  in  Marathi,  Safdar  Ali 
in  Urdu,  Krishna  Mohun  Banerjea,  Nehemiah  Goreh, 
Ramchandra  Bose,  and  the  Rev.  Lai  Bihari  Day,  are 
well-known  hymn- writers  in  India.  A  native  Malagasy, 
Andraianaivoravelona  by  name,  is  said  to  rival  Watts 
as  a  master  of  sacred  song  ;  "  Bon jare  [a  native  Chris- 
tian] has  added  thirteen  hymns  to  the  local  collection," 
is  an  item  in  a  recent  report  from  the  Congo  ;  while  a 
letter  concerning  the  dedication  of  a  new  church  in  the 
Livingstonia  Mission  states  incidentally  that  forty  new 
hymns  contributed  by  native  hymn- writers  were  sung 
for  the  first  time  in  a  public  assembly,  during  the 
services,  which  continued  for  three  days  !  Numerous 
other  illustrations  of  native  contributions  to  the 
hymnody  of  missions  might  be  given.  In  a  few  in- 
stances native  hymns  have  been  translated  into  Eng- 
lish, and  have  found  their  way  into  our  own  hymn- 
books. 

Missionaries  in  many  instances  have  translated  the 
best  hymns  of  Christendom,  but,  in  not  a  few  cases, 
including  some  of  the  sweetest  hymns  in  the  native 
languages,  their  contributions  have  been  original.  The 
work  of  translation  calls  for  much  discrimination  and 
skill,  and  represents  a  selection  from  the  best  produc- 
tions of  such  well-known  hymnists  as  Watts,  Wesley, 


The  Hymnody  of  Modern  Missions       209 

Doddridge,  Cowper,  Newton,  Heber,  Lyte,  Keble, 
Bonar,  Kay  Palmer,  Miss  Steele,  Miss  Havergal,  and 
many  other  English,  German,  and  American  writers, 
whose  contributions  have  become  a  part  of  the  treasury 
of  song  in  the  universal  mission  Church.  Earlier 
efforts  in  the  difficult  vernaculars  may  in  some  cases 
have  been  unsatisfactory,  and  it  was  to  be  expected 
that  constant  improvement  would  appear  in  the  quality 
and  artistic  power  of  later  productions.  It  has  proved 
so,  for  hymns  once  in  use  are  now  discarded  for  those 
which  are  better.  The  hymnody  of  some  mission  fields 
has  been  brought  to  charming  perfection  of  form,  as 
well  as  distinction  of  style.  In  almost  every  mission 
some  one  has  been  found  who  could  adapt  foreign  or 
native  tunes  to  devotional  uses,  and  prepare  a  system 
of  musical  notation  which  would  be  serviceable.  Mrs. 
Timothy  Richard  was  the  author  of  a  Chinese  tune- 
book  according  to  a  system  of  native  notation,  and  Miss 
Laura  M.  White,  of  the  Methodist  Mission,  Chinkiang, 
has  been  commissioned  by  the  Educational  Association 
of  China  to  prepare  a  music- book  in  Mandarin  for  use 
in  the  schools.  It  is  interesting  to  note  that  the  Mag- 
nificat and  the  Nunc  Dimittis  have  been  arranged  in 
a  key  especially  suited  to  Chinese  voices,  and  are 
much  liked,  and  well  sung.  Mrs.  David  Downie  has 
utilized  many  native  airs  for  Christian  hymns  in 
Telugu,  while  Drs.  Samuel  Jessup  and  George  A. 
Ford  have  adapted  some  beautiful  Syrian  melodies  to 
popular  hymns. 

The  devout  Moravians  have  translated  their  own 
Church  hymns  into  all  the  prominent  languages  of 
their  mission  fields.  The  Indians  of  North  and  South 
America,  the  Negroes  of  the  West  Indies,  the  Green- 


210  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

landers,  Kaffirs,  Hottentots,  and  Australian  aborigines, 
sing  the  songs  of  Zinzendorf,  Albertini,  Anna  Dober, 
Garve,  and  others  of  their  religious  poets.  Much  work 
of  fine  quality  in  hymnody  has  been  done  by  mission- 
aries in  India. 

In  China,  Morrison,  the  pioneer  missionary,  prepared 
the  first  hymn-book,  which  was  issued  in  1818.  Since 
then,  in  Wenli,  in  Mandarin,  and  in  the  numerous 
colloquials,  hymn-books  have  appeared  in  many  issues. 
In  Japan,  numerous  hymn-books,  both  of  missionary 
and  native  Christian  authorship,  have  been  issued  by 
several  of  the  denominations,  the  earliest  one  having 
appeared  about  the  year  1874.  A  union  hymn-book, 
containing  485  selections,  was  published  in  1903,  for 
use  in  all  the  evangelical  churches  of  Japan,  the  Epis- 
copal Church  cooperating  by  the  inclusion  of  over  a 
hundred  of  the  union  hymns  in  its  own  hymnal.  In 
1853,  not  a  Christian  hymn  was  sung  by  the  Japanese ; 
in  1903,  the  Union  Hymnal,  with  nearly  five  hundred 
selected  hymns,  was  reported  as  the  best  selling  book 
in  the  list  of  Christian  publications.  A  new  volume  of 
sacred  songs  was  printed  in  1900  for  use  among  For- 
mosan  Christians.  A  Presbyterian  hymn-book  in 
Korean  is  growing  year  by  year,  and  has  now  attained 
considerable  size,  having  been  issued  in  several  editions. 
An  Anglican  hymnal  is  also  ready  in  Korea. 

One  of  the  most  charming  and  helpful  contributions 
which  missions  have  been  able  to  make  to  the  spiritual 
welfare  of  foreign  peoples  is  this  gift  of  sacred  hymnody 
in  the  languages  of  many  devout  and  worshipful  souls, 
so  that  they  can  sing  of  Christ,  each  in  his  own  tongue 
wherein  he  was  born. 


XI 

Islam  and  Christian  Missions 


The  strength  of  any  religion  is  measured  by  its  conception  of  God. 
The  Moslem  idea  of  God  is  in  many  vital  respects  repellent  and  reactionary 
to  a  Christian.  Allah  is  a  despot  and  not  a  Father.  Yet  He  is  at  least  a  real 
power,  the  only  real  power  in  the  world.  There  is  a  simplicity  and  grandeur 
in  the  Moslem  conception  of  God,  His  unity,  His  omnipotence,  and  His 
absolute  sovereignty,  which  we  must  recognize.  Admitting  the  truth  of 
all  that  has  been  said  by  the  critics  of  Islam  as  to  the  defects  of  this  idea, 
its  inhumanity,  its  sterility,  its  negation  of  human  personality,  still  the 
question  suggests  itself:  Have  we  in  our  modern  theology  and  religion 
sufficiently  recognized  what  Islam  stands  for, — the  unity  and  the  sover- 
eignty of  God  ?  Here  is  a  religion  which  has  vitality  in  it.  It  can  still 
rouse  depths  of  fanaticism  in  its  followers.  It  is  a  great  and  formidable 
force  in  the  world  in  a  sense  in  which  other  religions  are  not.  May  it  not 
be  that  this  is  not  wholly  due  to  the  concessions  which  Islam  makes  to 
the  natural  heart  of  man,  but  that  in  its  profound  sense  of  the  sovereignty 
of  God  it  cherishes  something  which  is  eternal,  something  which  is  vital 
to  Christianity,  and  which,  it  may  be,  is  obscured  in  our  modern  versions 
of  it  ?  Here  the  Bible  and  Islam  are  entirely  at  one.  Modern  Chris- 
tianity believes  in  a  strictly  limited  monarchy  of  God.  To  the  Bible  and 
the  Koran  alike  there  is  but  one  God,  and  there  is  none  beside  Him. 
Here  we  are  in  the  region  of  the  unfathomable.  It  is  clear  that  the  con- 
clusions which  Islam  draws  from  this  first  principle  are  impossible  for  any 
Christian.  Sovereignty  without  love  is  a  mere  horror,  but  does  not  love 
without  sovereignty  mean  mere  disorder  and  tragedy,  and  a  division  of 
life  which  carries  us  back  to  polytheism  ?  The  whole  vitality  of  Chris- 
tian faith  springs  from  the  conviction  that  the  absolute  Sovereign  is  the 
absolute  Love. 

"  The  Missionary  Message," 
Report  of  Commission  IV,  Edinburgh  Conference,  19 10. 


XI 
ISLAM  AND  CHRISTIAN  MISSIONS1 

GOD  is  Himself  the  source  of  all  true  religion. 
In  contrast  with  "broken  cisterns,"  He  has 
spoken  of  Himself  as  a  "  Fountain  of  living 
waters."  All  human  systems  of  religion  are  not  only 
incapable  of  producing  the  "living  water,"  but,  like 
"  broken  cisterns,"  they  are  not  able  to  hold  water. 
They  are  not  simply  on  a  lower  level  of  wisdom  and 
power  than  the  divine  religion,  but  as  religions  they 
are  so  imperfectly  and  loosely  constructed  as  to  be  in- 
capable of  holding  in  any  helpful  and  saving  way  even 
the  modicum  of  truth  which  they  may  have  in  solution, 
and  are  not  able  to  provide  the  soul  of  man  with  the 
living  water  which  will  quench  his  spiritual  thirst. 

Our  subject  invites  our  attention  to  a  religious  faith 
which  has  had  a  marvellous  history,  and  to-day 
dominates  the  minds  and  hearts  of  millions  of  our  fel- 
low-men in  the  Orient.  We  mean  Islam,  or  the  religion 
of  Mohammed.  Here  the  thought  will  perhaps  occur 
to  many :  Is  it  not  taking  too  much  for  granted  to  rank 
Mohammedanism  among  merely  human  religions  ?  It 
has  been  the  faith  of  a  vast  number,  who  have  been 
singularly  loyal  and  intense  in  their  devotion  to  it,  and 
has  held  its  own  with  extraordinary  tenacity,  while  its 
central  truth  has  ever  been  the  acknowledgment  of  God's 
existence  and  supremacy.     This  is  all  true,  and  Islam 

1  The  Missionary  Review  of  the  World,  August,  1889. 
213 


214  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

should  have  the  credit  of  it.  There  is  probably  no  relig- 
ion, unless  confessedly  based  upon  the  facts  recorded  in 
the  Bible,  which  has  such  a  satisfying  element  of  truth 
in  its  creed,  and  presents  such  a  conception  of  a  per- 
sonal and  supreme  God  as  Islam.  As  compared  with 
idolatry,  it  is  an  immeasurably  nobler  form  of  worship. 
As  contrasted  with  the  metaphysical  vagaries  of  other 
Oriental  religions,  it  is  doctrinally  helpful.  It  is,  how- 
ever, simply  the  old  monotheism  of  the  ancient  Jewish 
religion  projected  into  the  Christian  ages,  with  the 
divine  environment  of  Judaism  and  the  essential 
features  of  its  Christian  development  left  out,  and  a 
human  environment  substituted.  "  There  is  no  God 
but  God,"  was  the  creed  of  the  Jew  long  before  the 
Moslem  proclaimed  it.  Mohammed  and  his  followers 
adopted  it,  apparently  in  disregard,  or  rather  in  super- 
cilious neglect,  of  its  historic  environment  under  the 
Jewish  dispensation,  and  brought  it  into  line  as  the 
leading  truth  of  a  human  scheme  of  religion.  They 
rejected  its  historic  development  in  the  Incarnation, 
acknowledged  Christ  simply  as  one  of  the  prophets, 
and  in  almost  every  respect  superseded  Him  by  an- 
other, and  making  Mohammed  the  central  personality,1 
they  established  the  Mohammedan  religion  as  the  latest 
and  best  revelation  from  heaven — a  religion  whose  right 
it  was  to  reign,  and  whose  prerogative  it  was  to  sup- 
plant and  annihilate  every  other  religion,  and  especially 
Christianity. 

We  cannot  undertake  in  the  limits  of  this  monograph 
to  bring  forward  the  evidences  that  Mohammedanism  as 
a  spiritual  system  must  be  classed  as  a  human  rather  than 
a  divinely  authenticated  religion,  nor  can  we  under- 

1  Zwemer,  "  The  Moslem  Christ,"  pp.  155-173. 


Islam  and  Christian  Missions  215 

take  to  present  the  evidence  furnished  by  the  present 
state  of  the  Moslem  world  that  as  a  religion  it  has 
proved  futile  and  powerless  as  an  uplifting  agency.  It 
would  absorb  too  much  of  our  space,  and  lead  us  away 
from  the  main  purpose  we  have  in  view.  We  must  be 
content  to  rest  the  verdict  as  to  its  alien  birth  and  false 
credentials  upon  one  single  consideration,  which  for  our 
purposes  at  the  present  time  should  be  sufficient  to 
vu  rry  conviction.  "  What  think  ye  of  Christ  ?  "  is  here, 
as  elsewhere,  a  test  question.  The  Mohammedan  relig- 
ion, while  acknowledging  Christ  as  one  of  the  prophets, 
yet  denies  that  He  is  anything  more  than  one  of  the 
prophets.  His  unique  position  as  God  in  the  flesh — the 
Messiah  of  prophecy,  the  Redeemer  of  men,  the  heaven- 
sent Mediator,  the  divinely-appointed  bearer  of  an  aton- 
ing sacrifice,  the  Prophet,  Priest,  and  King  of  a  re- 
deemed Israel,  the  risen  Lord,  and  the  ascended  Inter- 
cessor, the  only  "  name  under  heaven  given  among  men 
whereby  we  must  be  saved,"  is  boldly  denied  and 
haughtily  repudiated  by  the  Moslem.  The  office  and 
work  and  dignity  of  the  Holy  Spirit  are  also  rejected. 
In  place  of  the  divine  Christ  and  the  life-giving  Holy 
Spirit,  we  have  a  conception  of  God  which  is  but  an  im- 
perfect and  misleading  reproduction  of  the  earliest 
Jewish  idea,  and  is  cold  and  bald  and  stern,  without  the 
tenderness  of  fatherhood  or  the  sweet  ministries  of  pity 
— for,  after  all,  divine  mercy  in  the  view  of  the  Moslem 
is  quite  as  much  of  the  nature  of  a  deserved  reward  as 
of  a  compassionate  ministry.  It  thus  becomes  a  res- 
toration, through  purely  human  agency,  in  an  environ- 
ment of  ignorance,  of  the  earliest  revelation  of  a 
Supreme  Being.  This  distorted  reflection  of  the  primi- 
tive   teachings    of  religion  about  the  Deity  is  still 


216  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

further  marred  and  shadowed  by  making  Mohammed 
His  greatest  prophet,  and  the  Koran  His  final  and  con- 
summate revelation  to  man.  The  result  as  compared 
with  Christianity  is  a  notable  failure  on  a  human  plane 
of  religious  thought,  yet  with  enough  of  the  light  of 
heaven  borrowed  and  misinterpreted  to  deceive  the 
conscience,  and  lead  an  ignorant  Oriental  constituency 
to  accept  it  as  a  revelation  from  heaven,  and  Mohammed 
as  a  prophet  sent  of  God.  An  intelligent  Christian 
faith  can  pronounce  but  one  judgment  upon  this  ques- 
tion. After  recognizing  every  element  of  truth  which 
Islam  has  borrowed  from  Judaism  or  Christianity,  it 
must  pronounce  it  lacking  in  the  essentials  of  saving 
religion  as  we  find  them  in  God's  Word.1 

Much  that  is  included  in  Moslem  doctrine  is  valuable ; 

1  Islam  and  Christianity  are  separated  by  vivid  contrasts.  The 
fundamental  contrast  is  in  their  conception  of  God.  Muhammad  saw 
and  emphasized  a  few  of  the  true  attributes  of  God,  but  his  God  was 
a  ruler,  a  sovereign,  not  a  Father.  His  religion,  accordingly,  made  no 
provision  for  the  soul's  need  of  fellowship  with  God.  He  did  not 
realize  the  holiness  of  God.  The  whole  conception  of  ethical  charac- 
ter was  strange  to  him.  There  was  in  him,  accordingly,  none  of  the 
moral  splendour,  the  ethical  righteousness  of  the  Hebrew  prophets,  far 
less  of  the  apostles  of  Christianity.  The  Muhammadan  idea  of  God, 
moreover,  really  separated  God  from  man  and  the  world.  That  was 
why,  on  one  hand,  Suffism  arose  to  satisfy  with  its  pantheism  the 
hunger  of  the  soul  for  God,  and,  on  the  other  hand,  it  accounted  for 
Muslim  agnosticism  and  the  cynical  atheism  of  "  Umar  Khayyam." 
This  ideal  of  God,  furthermore,  made  the  conceptions  of  incarnation 
and  atonement  impossible  in  Islam.  The  new  religion  did  proclaim  a 
real  brotherhood,  and  the  noble  equalities  of  Muhammadanism  have 
been  a  great  reality,  and  are  a  great  reproach  to  the  caste  spirit, 
whether  in  Hinduism  or  in  Christian  society.  But  Islam  knew  no  real 
human  brotherhood.  It  was  a  fellowship  in  Islam,  which  utterly 
denied  the  truth  of  human  unity  and  of  one  common  world  family  of 
God.— Robert  E.  Speer,  D.  D. 


Islam  and  Christian  Missions  217 

but  what  is  not  there  is  essential.  The  modicum  of 
truth  is  lost  in  the  maximum  of  error.  A  counterfeit 
coin  may  have  some  grains  of  pure  metal  in  it,  but  its 
entire  make-up  is  none  the  less  a  deception,  and  it  must 
be  condemned.  So  Mohammedanism  must  be  judged, 
not  because  it  does  not  contain  any  truth,  but  because 
the  truth  is  so  mixed  with  superabounding  alloy  that  in 
the  combination  it  fails  to  vindicate  itself,  and  has  be- 
come simply  an  ingredient  of  a  compound  which,  on  the 
whole,  must  be  regarded  as  false  metal.  One  truth 
mixed  in  with  twenty  errors  will  not  make  a  resultant 
of  truth,  especially  if  the  twenty  errors  are  in  direct  op- 
position to  other  truths  as  essential  as  the  one  included. 
If  we  extend  our  survey  over  the  whole  field  of  Moslem 
doctrine  and  practice,  the  conviction  becomes  irresistible 
that  its  moral  influence  in  the  world  has  not  been  up- 
lifting, and  its  spiritual  results  have  brought  to  man 
nothing  higher  than  formalism,  self-righteousness,  and 
a  mistaken  estimate  of  the  merit  which  attaches  to  a 
loyal  confession  of  the  creed  of  Islam. 

Mohammedanism  is  a  profound  theme,  and  one 
which  has  occupied  the  minds  of  many  accomplished 
scholars.  It  has  been  the  subject  of  much  patient  re- 
search and  careful  thought  by  some  of  the  greatest 
students  of  history.  Dr.  Johnson  once  remarked  that 
"  There  are  two  objects  of  curiosity — the  Christian 
world  and  the  Mohammedan  world  ;  all  the  rest  may 
be  considered  as  barbarous."  The  subject  is  worthy  of 
a  careful  examination,  both  for  its  own  sake  as  one  of 
the  enigmas  of  religious  history,  and  also  to  prepare 
our  minds  for  an  intelligent  understanding  of  the 
amazing  task  to  which  God  is  leading  the  Church,  viz., 
the  conversion  of  the  Moslem   world  to   Christianity. 


218  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

The  duty  of  Christianity  to  Mohammedanism,  the 
enormous  difficulties  in  the  way  of  discharging  it,  the 
historic  grandeur  of  the  conflict,  the  way  in  which  the 
honour  of  Christ  is  involved  in  the  result,  and  the  bril- 
liant issues  of  victory,  all  combine  to  make  this  prob- 
lem of  the  true  relation  of  Christian  missions  to  Islam 
one  of  the  most  fascinating  and  momentous  themes 
which  the  great  missionary  movement  of  our  age  has 
pressed  upon  the  attention  of  the  Christian  Church. 
The  number  of  Moslems  in  the  world  is  given  in  the 
latest  statistical  tables  as  about  200,000,000.  This  is 
possibly  too  high  an  estimate,  but  we  may  safely  fix 
the  figure  at  not  less  than  180,000,000.  They  are 
chiefly  in  Western  Asia,  India,  and  Africa,  with  a  few 
in  Southeastern  Europe.  It  may  be  roughly  estimated 
that  the  total  number  of  those  who  have  lived  and 
died  in  the  Moslem  faith  since  its  establishment  is  over 
6,000,000,000 — a  number  equivalent  to  nearly  five 
times  the  present  population  of  the  globe.  Of  this 
vast  number  a  large  proportion  have,  of  course,  died  in 
infancy.  We  are  dealing,  therefore,  with  the  religious 
faith  of  about  one-seventh  of  the  human  race.  It  can- 
not be  regarded  as  a  stagnant  and  effete  religion,  unag- 
gressive in  spirit,  and  powerless  to  inspire  devotion  and 
sacrifice.  It  is  to-day  probably  the  most  pushing,  ag- 
gressive, and  formidable  opponent  of  Christianity  on 
foreign  mission  ground.  It  is  historically  true,  I  think, 
that  never  has  Christianity  been  called  upon  to  face  a 
more  thoroughly  equipped  and  a  more  desperately  de- 
termined adversary  than  Islam  ;  never  has  our  heaven- 
sent Gospel  received  a  more  militant  challenge  than 
that  given  it  by  the  religion  of  Mohammed. 

The  time  has  fully  come  for  the  Church  of  Christ 


Islam  and  Christian  Missions  219 

seriously  to  consider  her  duty  to  this  large  fraction  of 
our  race.  It  is  not  to  be  supposed  that  a  Church 
guided  and  inspired  by  an  Almighty  Leader  will  neg- 
lect a  duty  simply  because  it  is  difficult,  and  calls  for 
faith  and  fortitude.  The  attention  of  the  Christianity 
of  our  day  is  indeed  specially  and  urgently  directed  to 
the  needs  of  the  Moslem  world,  and  many  devout  and 
ardent  Christians  are  profoundly  convinced  that  a 
momentous  duty,  requiring  an  unusual  spirit  of  sacri- 
fice, looms  before  the  Church.  Let  us  not  be  faint- 
hearted, or  think  lightly  of  a  day  set  apart  as  was  the 
10th  of  October,  1912,  for  prayer  in  behalf  of  the  Mos- 
lem world.  We  have  good  reason  to  believe  that  it  has 
a  distinct  value,  and  an  influence — we  may  say  an  effi- 
ciency— in  securing  mighty  providential  interventions 
in  history,  opening  the  door  for  Gospel  missions  to 
voice  their  appeal  to  Moslem  hearts.  If  a  believing 
Church,  or  even  a  devout  group  of  united  Christian 
hearts,  calls  upon  God,  and  He  answers,  then  surely  if 
God  calls  upon  a  loyal  Church,  and  points  to  an  open 
door  of  duty,  it  is  time  for  praying  Christians  to  take 
heart,  and  devote  themselves  faithfully  to  any  ap- 
pointed task,  however  difficult. 

It  is  wholly  foreign  to  the  spirit  of  a  loyal  and  prayer- 
ful Christianity  to  slight  a  task  because  it  is  hard,  or 
ignore  a  question  of  moral  reform  or  religious  respon- 
sibility because  it  looks  formidable.  Let  us  endeavour, 
then,  calmly  to  consider  the  duty  of  Christian  missions 
to  the  Moslems.  Is  there  a  duty  of  this  kind  ?  If  so, 
what  special  difficulties  must  be  overcome  in  order  to 
its  successful  accomplishment ;  what  should  be  our  aim  ; 
and  what  is  the  spirit  which  should  inspire  and  govern 
us  in  the  proper  discharge  of  it  ? 


220  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

The  duty  seems  plain — "  Go  ye  into  all  the  world, 
and  preach  the  Gospel  to  every  creature."  The  Gospel 
of  Christ,  not  of  Mohammed — to  every  creature,  be- 
cause all  need  it.  If  there  were  a  possibility  of  a  hu- 
man substitute  for  the  Gospel,  we  might  consider  it  an 
open  question  whether  salvation  is  of  Mohammed  ;  but 
Christ  has  taught  us  one  way  of  salvation  for  all  men, 
and  that  way  is  through  Him — through  the  merits  of 
His  sacrifice,  and  not  through  works  or  worthiness  in 
man.  I  would  not  be  understood  as  implying  here 
that  the  prospects  of  every  Moslem  are  necessarily 
hopeless.  If  out  of  full  knowledge  and  with  deliberate 
purpose  he  despises  and  rejects  Christ,  and  puts  his 
sole  trust  in  Mohammed,  or  even  trusts  in  divine  mercy 
because  that  mercy  is  his  due  as  a  Moslem,  I  should 
feel  in  doubt  as  to  a  substantial  basis  of  hope  for  him. 
He  is  looking  to  a  human  saviour,  or  he  is  simply 
claiming  the  divine  mercy  as  a  subsidy  to  the  Moslem 
religion.  I  can  conceive,  however,  of  a  Mohammedan, 
while  formally  adhering  to  his  religion,  in  reality  tak- 
ing such  an  attitude  of  heart  to  Christ  that  he  may  re- 
ceive mercy  and  pardon  for  Christ's  sake,  though  he  is 
not  openly  enrolled  on  the  side  of  Christ.  God  alone  can 
judge  and  pronounce  when  a  soul  takes  that  attitude  of 
humility  and  faith  toward  His  Son,  or,  where  His  Son 
is  not  known,  toward  His  infinite  mercy,  which  will 
open  the  way  for  Him  to  apply  the  merits  of  Christ's 
atonement  to  the  salvation  of  that  soul. 

Where  Christ  is  known  and  recognized,  and  His 
claims  understood,  we  can  find  no  margin  of  hope 
outside  of  a  full  and  conscious  acceptance  of  Him.  In 
proportion  as  God  has  left  the  souls  of  men  in  igno- 
rance and  darkness  about  Christ,  in  that  proportion 


Islam  and  Christian  Missions  221 

may  we  enlarge  the  margin  of  hope  that  His  infinite 
mercy  will  find  the  way  to  respond  to  conscious  peni- 
tence and  humble  trust  by  freely  granting  and  apply- 
ing the  boundless  merits  of  Christ's  sacrifice  to  a  soul 
truly  seeking  after  Him.  "We  understand  the  Bible  to 
teach  that  the  opportunity  of  accepting  the  Gospel  is 
limited  to  life  this  side  of  the  grave,  and  that  no  clear 
intimation  is  given  of  a  probation  or  renewed  oppor- 
tunity beyond  our  earthly  existence.  It  is  also  clearly 
taught  in  the  Bible  that  salvation  is  not  of  works  nor 
of  external  adherence  to  any  sect.  The  Jew  was  not 
saved  because  he  was  a  Jew.  The  Christian  is  not 
saved  because  he  is  in  name  or  environment  a  Chris- 
tian. The  Moslem,  of  course,  cannot  be  saved  because 
he  is  a  Moslem.  All  who  may  be  saved  outside  of 
formal  and  visible  connection  with  Christianity  will  be 
saved  because  of  a  real  and  invisible  connection  with 
Christ.  They  will  have  obtained  consciously,  or  un- 
consciously, by  the  aid  of  God's  Spirit,  that  attitude  of 
humility  and  trust  toward  God  and  of  reverent  fealty 
to  essential  morals,  which  will  make  it  consistent  with 
His  character,  and  in  harmony  with  His  wisdom  and 
goodness,  to  impart  to  their  souls  the  free  gift  of  par- 
don through  Christ's  merits,  and  apply  to  them  in  the 
gladness  of  His  love  the  benefits  of  Christ's  death.  It 
is  in  any  case  salvation  by  gift,  received  from  God's 
mercy,  and  based  upon  Christ's  atonement,  and  not  in 
recognition  of  some  creedal  passport,  or  as  a  reward  of 
good  works,  or  by  reason  of  human  merit. 

We  claim,  therefore,  that  the  Mohammedan,  as  such, 
needs  the  knowledge  of  Christ,  and  can  be  saved  only 
through  Christ.  He  needs  to  be  taught  Christianity, 
and  brought  into  the  light  of  Bible  truth.     He  needs 


L 


222  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

to  recognize  the  serious  and  specious  errors  of  his  r& 
ligion,  and  turn  to  Christianity  as  the  true  light  from 
heaven.  He  needs  to  take  a  radically  different  and 
essentially  new  attitude  toward  Christ.  He  needs 
spiritual  regeneration  and  moral  reformation.  In  one 
word,  he  needs  the  Gospel.  He  needs  all  its  lessons, 
all  its  help,  and  all  its  inspiration  and  guidance.  Here 
we  rest  the  question  of  duty.  If  any  class  of  men  need 
the  Gospel,  to  them  it  should  be  given,  and  it  is  our 
mission  in  the  world  as  Christians  to  do  this. 

Let  us  turn  now  to  consider  the  special  difficulties  of 
mission  work  among  Moslems.  That  there  are  serious 
and  formidable  difficulties  is  not  simply  the  verdict  of 
well-informed  students  of  Eastern  history,  comparative 
religion,  and  international  relations,  but  it  is  a  matter 
of  experience.  All  missionaries  in  Moslem  communi- 
ties recognize  this,  and  there  is  hardly  a  problem  in  the 
whole  range  of  mission  service  which  is  a  severer  tax 
upon  faith,  courage,  and  wisdom  than  that  involved  in 
the  effort  to  win  converts  to  Christianity  from  Islam. 
It  is  necessary  to  a  full  understanding  of  this  phase  of 
our  subject  that  we  should  secure,  if  possible,  an  inside 
view  of  the  strength  and  resources  of  the  Mohammedan 
faith.  Let  us  endeavour  to  take  the  measure  of  our  an- 
tagonist. Let  us  ask  whence  the  power  and  prestige 
and  influence  of  Islam.  What  is  its  secret  of  success  ? 
What  makes  it  a  force  which  so  easily  dominates  the 
religious  life  of  so  many  millions  ?  What  gives  it  its 
aggressive  push  and  its  staying  power  ?  It  is  com- 
paratively easy  to  show  the  immense  inferiority  of 
Islam  to  Christianity  in  the  essential  points  of  true  re- 
ligion, especially  those  of  practical  morality.  It  is, 
however,  for  this  very  reason  all  the  more  difficult  to 


Islam  and  Christian  Missions  223 

give  a  satisfactory  explanation  of  its  successes,  and 
show  why  Christianity  is  so  slow  in  coping  with  it 
effectively. 

Islam  has  arisen,  within  the  pale,  so  to  speak,  of 
Christianity.  It  has  overrun  and  held  ground  which 
is  historically  Christian.  Its  great  conflict  has  been 
largely  with  Christianity.  It  now  occupies  regions 
which  were  the  scene  of  the  earliest  triumphs  of  the 
Christian  Church.  Christianity,  to  be  sure,  has  held  its 
own  in  a  marvellous  way  in  the  ancient  Oriental  Chris- 
tian sects  which  have  clung  to  their  Christian  faith  in 
the  very  centres  of  the  Moslem  domination.  Their 
influence,  however,  has  been  simply  negative.  The 
part  they  have  played  has  been  that  of  resistance  and 
stubborn  adherence  to  the  external  symbols  of  Christi- 
anity. They  have  never  succeeded,  for  good  reasons, 
in  impressing  the  Moslem  with  the  superiority  of  the 
Christian  religion.  We  must  not  fail,  however,  to  give 
them  the  credit  they  deserve,  and  to  recognize  God's 
wonderful  providence  in  preserving  them  to  be  used  as 
channels  for  introducing,  through  evangelical  mission- 
ary effort,  a  pure  and  spiritual  form  of  Christianity  into 
the  very  heart  of  the  Moslem  world. 

The  question  recurs  to  us — Whence  the  success  of 
Islam  ?  We  mean  its  success  not  as  an  accredited  re- 
ligion, but  in  winning  and  holding  its  devotees  in  the 
very  presence  of  the  Christian  centuries.  There  are 
some  considerations  which  throw  light  upon  this  point, 
and  if  we  give  them  a  few  moments  of  patient  attention 
they  may  help  to  lift  the  burden  of  this  great  mystery, 
and  at  the  same  time  will  bring  to  our  attention  more 
clearly  the  full  meaning  of  the  task  we  have  before  us 
in  winning  Islam  to  Christ  with  the  spiritual  appeals  of 


224  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

the  Gospel.  It  is  not  our  purpose,  and  it  is,  morever, 
clearly  impossible  to  attempt  here  any  full  or  critical 
survey  of  Mohammedanism.  This  would  require  a  vol- 
ume, and  the  gifts  and  learning  of  a  careful  student  of 
the  religious  and  political  intricacies  of  Oriental  history. 
What  we  have  to  offer,  however,  toward  the  solution  of 
the  problem  of  Mohammedan  success  will  be  the  result 
of  a  patient  study  of  the  subject,  in  connection  with  un- 
usual opportunities  for  personal  observation  of  the  intel- 
lectual, social,  and  religious  life  of  Moslems. 

Islam  is  a  living  power — a  strong  and  vigorous  moral 
force  among  Orientals  for  several  reasons,  and  with  all 
of  these  Christianity  must  reckon  if  she  is  to  win  her 
way.     We  will  name  them  in  order : 

I.  In  its  origin,  and  also  in  its  subsequent  history, 
Mohammedanism  represents  the  spirit  of  reform  work- 
ing under  the  inspiration  of  a  great  truth.  Mohammed 
appears  upon  the  stage  of  history  as  a  religious  reformer. 
In  the  early  period  of  his  career  he  was  influenced  no 
doubt  by  sincere- motives.  His  purpose  was  to  inaugu- 
rate a  religious  revolution — a  revolt  against  the  idolatry 
which  prevailed  in  Arabia.  The  heathenism  of  his  day 
was  gross  idolatry ;  and  the  Christianity  of  that  age  in  the 
Orient  was  little  better  in  its  superstitious  and  idola- 
trous practices.  The  recoil  from  these  conditions 
brought  in  the  era  of  the  iconoclast,  a  movement  which 
found 'support  even  within  the  circle  of  professed  Chris- 
tianity. It  was  the  purpose  of  Mohammed  to  reestablish 
among  men  a  spiritual  worship  of  the  one  God — to  de- 
molish forever  the  Arabian  Pantheon.  The  unity  and 
spirituality  of  the  Supreme  Being  were  basic  ideas  in  his 
religious  creed,  and  he  advocated  direct  communion  with 
God  in  prayer  and  worship,  and  the  utter  rejection  of 


Islam  and  Christian  Missions  225 

idolatry,  which  in  his  age  was  equivalent  to  polytheism. 
This  movement  was  certainly  a  remarkable  one  when  we 
consider  the  times,  and  the  environment  out  of  which  it 
sprung.  Had  it  been  inspired  and  guided  by  the  Spirit 
of  God,  and  founded  upon  the  revealed  Word,  with  a 
divinely  called  and  sanctified  leader,  we  might  have 
seen  the  moral  forces  of  the  great  Reformation  of  the 
sixteenth  century  in  active  operation  in  the  seventh. 

The  power  and  prestige  of  Mohammed  were  due  to 
the  fact  that  men  soon  believed  him  to  be  a  prophet 
sent  of  God,  and  his  message  was  to  such  an  extent  in 
the  name  and  to  the  honour  of  God  that  his  commis- 
sion seemed  to  be  genuine.  In  an  age  of  abject  super- 
stition and  drivelling  idolatry  he  announced  with  the 
prophetic  fervour  of  conviction  that  great  truth  which 
has  ever  had  the  power  to  arrest  the  attention  of  ear- 
nest minds,  namely,  the  existence  of  one  only  and  true 
God,  supreme  in  His  will,  and  absolute  in  His  power. 
With  the  music  of  this  eternal  truth  Mohammed  has 
held  the  attention  of  a  large  portion  of  the  Eastern 
world  for  over  twelve  hundred  years.  This  one  mes- 
sage has  seemed  to  guarantee  him  as  a  prophet  to  his 
misguided  and  undiscriminating  followers.  Having 
given  bonds,  as  it  were,  of  such  overwhelming  value  in 
this  one  supreme  truth,  men  have  not  been  careful  to 
scrutinize  in  other  respects  his  credentials ;  with  the 
charm  and  majesty  of  this  one  great  central  idea  of  all 
religion,  he  has  swept  all  before  him.  This,  in  connec- 
tion with  the  success  of  his  arms,  as  his  followers  carried 
on  in  his  name  their  successful  aggressive  warfare,  has 
been  his  passport  to  the  front  rank  of  religious  leader- 
ship ;  and  although  he  hopelessly  forfeited  his  position 
by  the  manifest  signs  of  moral  weakness  and  human 


226  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

ignorance,  yet  the  clarion  call  of  "  No  God  but  God  !  " 
has  held  the  ear  of  the  East  with  a  constancy  at  once 
marvellous  and  pathetic.  Out  of  absolute  sovereignty 
unguided  reason  has  drifted  into  stolid  fatalism,  and 
this,  no  doubt,  has  given  to  Islam  one  of  the  secrets  of 
its  power  as  a  religion  of  unconditional  yet  ready  sur- 
render to  God's  will.  It  was  considered  in  no  wise  to 
the  discredit  of  Mohammed  that  he  taught  what  is 
practically  a  plan  of  salvation  by  works,  based  upon 
external  allegiance  to  a  religious  creed,  and  it  rather 
added  to  his  popularity  with  his  Oriental  following  that 
his  religion  officially  sanctioned  polygamy,  slavery,  and 
unlimited  divorce. 

The  Prophet  of  Mecca,  however,  was  simply  a  relig- 
ious enthusiast  with  a  tendency  to  mysticism — a  man 
of  visions  and  dreams — with  a  sensitive  and  imagina- 
tive temperament,  a  disordered  physical  system,  and 
a  nature  swayed  by  passions,  and  lacking  in  moral 
stamina,  who  became  deeply  impressed  with  the  Jewish 
conception  of  one  spiritual  God,  and  conceived  himself  to 
be  a  prophet  of  monotheistic  reform  amid  the  abounding 
follies  of  idolatry.  Under  the  influence,  no  doubt,  of 
sincere  conviction,  he  began  to  teach  and  proclaim  the 
religious  ideas  which  had  lodged  in  his  mind  from  all 
sources — Jewish  and  Christian  and  heathen — and  shaped 
them  into  the  rude  consistency  of  the  Moslem  code. 
He  can  hardly  be  considered  the  originator  of  the  relig- 
ious reform  he  advocated.  He  was  rather  the  expo- 
nent of  a  spirit  of  reformation  which  seems  to  have  been 
in  the  air  at  that  time.  The  movement  at  first  did  not 
seem  to  imply  more  than  a  purely  religious  purpose.  It 
was  not  until  the  exigencies  of  his  success  led  him  to 
adopt  methods  of  expediency  and  worldly  policy  that 


Islam  and  Christian  Missions  227 

Mohammed  became  the  political  schemer  and  the  ambi- 
tious leader  of  a  military  movement. 

II.  Mohammedanism  was  established  and  propagated 
by  the  agency  of  two  of  the  most  energetic  and  com- 
manding forces  of  human  history — the  power  of  moral 
conviction,  and  the  power  of  the  sword.  In  addition,  it 
at  once  threw  its  mantle  of  protection  and  loyalty  over 
every  adherent,  and  acknowledged  him  as  a  member  of 
a  Moslem  brotherhood  in  which  all  are  equal,  and  all 
can  expect  and  claim  the  help  and  protection  of  all 
others.  Islam  is  a  religious  caste — so  much  so  that  in 
India,  the  land  of  castes,  it  exists  and  wins  its  converts 
from  the  people  of  India  without  any  disturbance  or 
shock  to  the  claims  and  exactions  of  the  spirit  of  caste. 
It  is  an  immense  religious  monopoly — a  gigantic  cor- 
poration whose  celestial  capital  is  of  unknown  propor- 
tions— a  stupendous  combination  for  the  exclusive 
handling  of  the  commodities  of  Paradise.  It  is  an 
actual  "  Brotherhood  "  of  Moslems,  a  social,  political, 
and  religious  "  Union  "  of  knights  of  the  turban.  With 
the  exception  that  the  Sunnites  repudiate  the  Shiites 
as  heretics,  and  the  latter  return  the  compliment,  and 
barring  certain  dogmatic  divergencies  in  the  theological 
schools,  there  is  practical  unity  in  Islam,  and  every 
Moslem  befriends  and  respects  every  other  Moslem  be- 
cause of  the  religious  affinity  which  exists  between 
them.  This  striking  feature  of  the  Moslem  religion  is 
to-day  one  of  the  most  powerful  forces  to  hold  Moham- 
medanism together  throughout  the  world. 

III.  Islam  has  never  known  or  seen  Christianity 
except  in  its  corrupt  and  semi-idolatrous  forms.  This 
is  a  damage  to  Christianity — a  gain  to  Islam.  Moham- 
medanism is  thus  enabled  to  appear  in  the  role  of  a 


228  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

spiritual  religion  inviting  to  direct  communion  with  the 
Deity,  scorning  the  fiction  of  a  human  priesthood  as  in 
any  sense  a  necessary  instrument  of  mediation  between 
God  and  the  soul,  and  rebuking  idolatry  in  all  its  forms. 
On  the  other  hand,  the  corrupt  Christianity  of  the  East 
seems  to  be  deeply  imbued  with  the  spirit  of  idolatry, 
overloaded  with  superstitious  practices,  and  weighted 
with  the  enormous  assumptions  of  the  Oriental  priest- 
hood. This  was,  and  is  still,  an  element  of  weakness 
to  Christianity,  and  of  strength  to  Islam.  It  reduces 
the  spiritual  energy  and  convincing  power  of  Chris- 
tianity to  a  minimum,  and  gives  to  Islam  a  vigour  and 
assurance,  and  a  direct  hold  upon  the  religious  nature 
which  it  could  not  have  had  in  the  presence  of  a 
purer  form  of  Christianity.  Could  Islam  have  sub- 
dued a  Christianity  filled  with  the  spiritual  power  of 
the  Keformation  ?  Could  it  gain  its  historic  victories 
over  the  form  of  Christianity  found  in  our  American 
Churches  ?  Most  assuredly  not !  The  power  of  a 
living  Christ  is  more  than  a  match  for  Islam  in  any 
age  of  the  world,  and  among  any  class  of  people. 
There  is  no  hope  that  the  Moslem  will  ever  be  con- 
verted to  Christianity  as  we  see  it  in  the  Greek  and 
Papal  Churches  of  the  Orient.  There  is  an  ever-bright- 
ening hope  that  a  purer  and  more  spiritual  form  of 
Christianity  may  carry  conviction.  We  are  sure,  in 
fact,  that  God  will  never  use  any  other  agency  than 
the  Gospel  in  its  purity  for  the  conversion  of  the 
Moslem  world.  It  is  with  this  conviction  that  Prot- 
estant missions  in  the  Orient  have  been  labouring  ever 
since  their  entrance  into  the  field  to  establish  a  pure 
Christianity  in  the  East,  that  a  regenerated  Christianity 
may  be  ready  to  carry  conviction  to  hearts  hitherto 


Islam  and  Christian  Missions  229 

shut  and  barred  against  the  entrance  of  the  truth.  It 
will  be  an  immense  gain  to  Christianity  as  a  religion, 
in  the  eyes  of  the  Moslem,  not  to  be  encumbered  with 
the  odium  of  image  and  picture  worship  as  we  see  it  in 
the  Oriental  Churches.  It  is  at  present  a  part  of  a 
Moslem's  religion  to  despise  every  form  of  Christianity 
with  which  he  has  come  in  contact.  It  is  only  as  he 
becomes  familiar  with  Protestant  forms  of  worship  and 
thought  and  life  that  he  begins  to  realize  that  there  is 
not  necessarily  an  idolatrous  element  and  a  human 
priesthood  associated  with  it. 

IV.  Islam  has  all  the  advantage  which  there  is  in 
the  magnetic  power  of  personal  leadership.  Christianity 
has  Christ.  Islam  has  Mohammed.  Such  a  comparison 
may  startle  and  half  offend  Christian  sensibilities,  but 
it  may  be  unwelcome  to  the  Moslem  for  a  reason  pre- 
cisely opposite.  Mohammed  is  regarded  as  an  inspired 
man  and  a  divinely  sent  prophet,  and  the  supreme 
historical  personality  in  the  religion  he  founded. 
There  is  a  magnetic  charm  about  the  Prophet  of  Islam 
which  thrills  the  whole  Moslem  world.  They  believe 
in  him,  and  are  ready  at  any  sacrifice  to  uphold  the 
honour  of  his  name.  Would  that  the  nominal  Chris- 
tian world — we  do  not  refer  here  to  the  inner  circle  of 
Christ's  loving  followers — were  as  visibly  and  unre- 
servedly loyal  to  the  honour  and  dignity  of  Christ's 
name  as  Islam  is  to  that  of  her  prophet.  Imagine  the 
city  of  New  York  thrown  into  a  state  of  dangerous 
excitement  because  some  one  down  at  the  Battery  had 
cursed  the  name  of  Jesus  Christ.  In  any  Eastern  city 
where  Moslems  reside,  the  improper  or  contemptuous 
use  of  the  name  of  Mohammed  in  public  would  produce 
an  uproar,  and  possibly  lead  to  violence  and  bloodshed. 


230  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

To  be  sure,  we  must  recognize  in  this  connection  the 
difference  between  the  conservatism  of  civilization  and 
the  fanaticism  of  Eastern  devotees ;  yet  the  fact  re- 
mains that  there  is  a  public  and  prevailing  respect  for 
the  name  of  Mohamm  3d  in  the  Moslem  world  which 
indicates  the  commanding  power  of  his  personality 
among  his  followers. 

V.  Islam  proposes  easy  terms  of  salvation,  and  easy 
dealings  with  sin,  and  is  full  of  large  license  and  at- 
tractive promise  to  the  lower  sensuous  nature.  The 
shibboleth  of  "  No  God  but  God  "  is  the  password  to 
the  skies.  Salvation  is  simply  the  provision  of  mercy 
on  God's  part  for  all  true  Moslems.  It  is  mercy  shown 
because  of  works  done,  and  as  a  reward  for  loyalty.  If 
that  loyalty  is  crowned  by  martyrdom,  then  martyrdom 
in  its  turn  is  crowned  by  exceptional  rewards.  Holi- 
ness as  an  element  of  God's  character  and  man's  re- 
ligious life  is  a  very  vague  and  shadowy  matter  to  the 
Moslem,  and  the  same  may  be  said  of  his  view  of  the 
nature  of  sin.  This  is,  however,  quite  consistent  with 
the  fact  that  Islam  for  conscience'  sake  insists  on  many 
of  the  great  truths  of  religion,  such  as  faith  and  prayer, 
God's  absolute  sovereignty  (misinterpreted,  however, 
in  terms  of  fatalistic  realism),  man's  moral  account- 
ability, a  coming  judgment,  and  a  future  state  both  of 
happiness  and  retribution,  and  meanwhile  maintains  a 
formal  but  very  indifferent  ethical  and  religious  code 
which  it  strives  to  enforce.  It  is  true,  nevertheless, 
that  regeneration  and  moral  reformation — the  becom- 
ing of  a  "  new  creature,"  as  the  Scriptures  express  it,  is 
not  a  doctrine  or  a  practical  outcome  of  the  Moslem 
religion.  Regeneration  is  not  a  password  in  the  Mo- 
hammedan heaven.     "  Ye  must  be  born  again  "  is  not 


Islam  and  Christian  Missions  231 

an  essential  of  his  creed.  Transformation  of  character 
is  to  him  simply  a  metaphysical  fiction,  and  justifica- 
tion by  the  merits  of  Christ  is  an  absurdity.  Haw- 
thorne's charming  literary  fiction  of  a  celestial  railway 
is  a  suggestive  illustration  of  the  Moslem  theory  of 
salvation.  Every  good  Mohammedan  has  a  perpetual 
free  pass  over  that  line,  which  not  only  secures  to  him 
personally  a  safe  transportation  to  Paradise,  but  pro- 
vides for  him  upon  his  arrival  there  so  luxuriously  that 
he  can  leave  all  the  superfluous  impedimenta  of  his 
earthly  harem  behind  him,  and  begin  his  celestial 
career  with  an  entirely  new  outfit. 

We  express  no  astonishment  that  Mohammed  did  not 
teach  these  high  mysteries  of  religion,  nor  do  we 
charge  him  with  any  deliberate  purpose  to  deceive,  and 
play  the  part  of  an  impostor ;  we  simply  point  to  the 
absence  of  these  unique  and  essential  features  of  re- 
vealed truth  as  an  evidence  that  his  scheme  of  religion, 
and  his  method  of  salvation,  may  be  ranked  as  human  con- 
ceptions, and  that  his  soul  was  not  taught  of  God  in  the 
things  of  the  kingdom.  The  great  truth  which  found 
him  and  captured  him  was  at  once  poured  into  a  mould 
of  his  own  human  making.  The  light  which  shone 
around  him  was  a  broken  and  darkened  reflection  of  di- 
vine revelation,  which  he  proceeded  to  focus  as  best  he 
could  with  the  lens  of  human  reason.  He  brought  the 
scattered  rays  to  the  burning  point  in  his  doctrine  of 
"one  God,"  but  the  result  was  God  and  Mohammed — 
not  the  eternal  truth  revealed  in  its  true  setting  by  the 
inspired  guidance  of  the  Divine  Spirit,  but  distorted  by 
the  unguided  presumption  of  the  human  medium. 

YI.  Islam  comes  into  conflict  with  the  doctrinal 
teachings  of  Cmistianity^?^  at  those  points  where  rea- 


232  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

son  has  its  lest  vantage  ground  in  opposition  to  faith. 
The  doctrines  which  Islam  most  strenuously  opposes 
and  repudiates  in  Christianity  are  confessedly  the  most 
profound  mysteries  of  the  faith.  They  are  the  great 
problems  over  which  Christianity  herself  has  ever  pon- 
dered with  amazement  and  awe,  and  with  reference  to 
which  there  has  been  the  keenest  discussion  and  the 
largest  reserve,  even  within  the  ranks  of  professed  be- 
lievers. The  Incarnation,  the  Divinity  of  Christ,  the 
Trinity,  are  all  stumbling-blocks  to  the  Moslem,  and 
are  looked  upon  rather  in  the  light  of  puzzling  enigmas 
than  sober  truths.  The  doctrine  of  the  Cross,  the  whole 
conception  of  the  Atonement,  is  to  his  mind  a  need- 
less vagary.  Divine  mercy,  in  his  view,  is  ample 
enough,  and  can  act  freely  and  promptly  in  the  case  of 
all  Moslems,  without  the  mystical  mediation  of  a 
vicarious  sacrifice.  That  the  Incarnate  Christ  should 
die  upon  the  cross  as  a  sacrifice  for  the  sins  of  men  is 
to  his  mind  an  absurdity  which  borders  upon  blasphemy. 
It  is  in  vain  we  attempt  to  solve  these  mysteries  by  a 
refined  theory  of  Christ's  exalted  personality,  with  its 
two  natures  in  one  person.  It  is  to  his  mind  simply 
unfathomable,  and  he  dismisses  the  whole  subject  of 
Christ's  unique  position  and  work,  as  taught  in  the 
Bible,  with  a  feeling  of  impatience,  as  only  one  of 
many  Christian  superstitions.  As  we  think  of  this 
attitude  of  the  Moslem  toward  the  mysteries  of  the 
Christian  faith,  and  measure  the  capacity  of  our  own 
unaided  reason  to  deal  with  such  themes  as  these,  who 
of  us  is  not  ready  to  exclaim :  "  This  is  probably  just 
the  attitude  which  my  own  darkened  and  finite  reason 
would  take  were  it  not  for  the  guidance  of  God's  re- 
vealed Word!"    These  mysteries  of  the  Trinity,  of 


Islam  and  Christian  Missions  233 

God  in  the  flesh,  and  of  Christ  upon  the  Cross,  are  the 
most  amazing  revelations  of  the  Infinite  to  the  finite 
mind,  and  it  is  only  as  faith  aids  and  supports  reason 
that  they  will  be  trustfully,  joyfully,  and  gratefully 
received.  Absolute  sovereignty  in  its  relation  to 
human  freedom  has  found  its  solution  to  the  Moslem 
in  fatalism.  The  Moslem  objects  also  to  Christian 
morality,  and  regards  it  as  an  impracticable  ideal 
which  he  never  found  exemplified  in  all  the  Chris- 
tianity he  ever  knew  anything  about.  Unfortunately, 
the  ethical  standards,  and  the  known  practice,  of  a 
large  part  of  the  Christian  laity  and  the  Christian 
priesthood  of  all  ranks  in  the  Oriental  Churches  is  to  a 
sad  extent  a  confirmation  of  his  theory  that  Christianity 
is  marred  by  hypocrisy  and  unreality,  being  impossible 
in  doctrine,  and  in  practice  often  untrue  to  its  own 
standards. 

Let  us  pause  for  a  moment  in  review,  and  endeavour 
to  estimate  the  difficulties  of  this  historic  situation. 
Remember  that  Islam  in  its  origin,  and  in  its  subsequent 
contact  with  Christianity,  was  the  spirit  of  reforma- 
tion inspired  by  high  enthusiasm  grasping  a  great 
religious  truth,  and  contending  for  it  in  the  face  of 
soul-degrading  and  soul-destroying  idolatry.  I  am 
inclined  to  believe  if  you  and  I  had  lived  in  those 
times  amid  the  dark  idolatry  of  Arabia,  and  had 
possessed  the  conviction  and  the  courage,  we  would 
have  responded  to  the  call  of  Mohammed,  and  would 
have  been  thrilled  with  the  thought  that  there  was  no 
God  but  God,  and  probably  we  would  have  been 
captivated  with  the  idea  that  Mohammed  having  such 
a  message  must  be  a  leader  sent  of  God.  The  unity 
and  supremacy  of  God  is  to-day  the  central  truth  of 


L 


234  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

the  Moslem's  creed,  in  the  recognition  of  which  he 
subdues  his  soul  and  prostrates  his  body,  and  with  a 
feeling  of  profound  conviction  says :  "  La  ilah  ilia 
Ullah ! "  Kemember,  again,  the  fiery  energy  of  the 
Moslem,  and  the  marvellous  successes  of  his  arms,  and 
his  practical  recognition  of  religious  brotherhood.  Re- 
member, also,  that  he  has  never  been  familiar  with 
anything  but  a  corrupt  and  spiritually  demoralized 
Christianity.  Remember  the  charm  and  power  to  the 
impressionable  Oriental  of  that  historic  personality 
of  the  Prophet  of  Islam.  Remember  its  offer  of  im- 
mediate access  to  God,  and  a  free  and  exclusive  salva- 
tion to  all  loyal  adherents.  Remember  its  liberal 
margin  for  human  faults  and  passions,  and  the  fact 
that  it  lays  no  violent  hands  upon  sins  of  the  flesh. 
Remember  the  Paradise  it  pictures  to  the  sensuous 
Oriental  imagination.  Remember  that  it  makes  its 
issue  with  Christianity,  and  puts  forward  its  assump- 
tions of  superiority  just  at  those  points  where  the 
darkened  and  finite  reason  of  man  is  most  inclined  to 
falter  and  yield,  and  where  Christianity  advances 
truths  which  only  a  God-taught  faith  can  receive  and 
grasp,  and  which  have  been  attacked  with  equal 
vehemence  by  agnostic  philosophy  and  rationalistic 
criticism.  Remember,  moreover,  that  Islam  has  al- 
ways regarded  Christianity  as  cowed  and  defeated, 
and  that  Reformed  Christianity,  with  its  spiritual 
weapons,  and  its  resources  of  grace,  and  its  heavenly 
alliances,  has  never  fairly  grappled  with  Mohammedan- 
ism, and  that  every  energy  of  both  State  and  Church 
will  be  in  array  to  prevent  the  very  entrance  of  Chris- 
tianity into  the  field,  and  will  seek  to  hold  the  Moslem 
world  intact  by  every  resource  of  irresponsible  power. 


Islam  and  Christian  Missions  235 

If  we  bear  in  mind  also  that  in  the  Turkish  Empire  at 
least  every  defection  from  the  Moslem  ranks  has  al- 
ways been  looked  upon  in  the  same  light  as  a  deser- 
tion from  the  army,  we  can  form  some  conception  of 
the  gigantic  task  and  the  heroic  opportunity  God  is 
preparing  in  the  near  future  for  the  Christian  Church. 
Christianity  in  her  historic  childhood  was  called  upon 
to  contend  with  the  colossal  power  of  the  heathen 
Roman  Empire.  She  was  victorious,  although  her 
resources  were  limited,  and  her  opponent  was,  to  all 
human  judgment,  unconquerable.  Let  her  not  think 
now,  in  her  splendid  maturity,  with  her  imperial 
resources,  her  heavenly  Leader,  her  gracious  mission, 
and  with  the  crying  needs  and  the  pressing  problems 
and  the  deepening  conflicts  of  this  twentieth  century 
challenging  her  attention,  that  her  warfare  is  accom- 
plished, and  she  may  disband  her  forces.  It  is  rather 
the  hour  when  she  may  win  her  "Victoria  Cross." 
Islam,  and  all  else  arrayed  in  opposition,  must  first 
give  place  to  Christianity.  Our  Lord  is  even  now 
leading  His  Church  to  this  vantage  ground  of  sublime 
privilege  and  high  responsibility.  His  leadership  is 
our  inspiration,  His  promises  our  hope,  His  power  our 
trust,  His  glory  and  supremacy  our  aim,  and  the  only 
possible  outcome  of  the  contest. 

Christian  missions  as  related  to  Mohammedanism  and 
the  missionary  activity  of  Islam  are  now  more  than 
ever  live  themes  among  readers  of  the  current  mission- 
ary literature  of  Europe  and  America.  Protestant 
missions  in  the  Turkish  Empire  have  in  the  past  hardly 
assumed  any  openly  aggressive  attitude  toward  Mos- 
lems, even  though  political  changes  at  times  may  have 
seemed  to  open  the  door  of  access.     In  more  quiet  and 


236  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

unnoticed  ways,  through  the  circulation  of  the  Bible 
and  religious  books,  tracts,  and  newspapers,  the  stimu- 
lus to  education,  and  the  establishment  of  Protestant 
churches,  free  from  the  superstitions  and  idolatrous 
practices  of  Oriental  Christianity,  and  the  general  im- 
pulse given  to  free  thought  and  inquiry,  a  new  spirit  is 
being  awakened  among  Moslems.  A  wide-spread  desire 
for  light  is  abroad  among  them  ;  secret  convictions 
control  many  hearts  whose  real  attitude  toward 
Christ  and  the  Bible  is  not  suspected  ;  many  are  long- 
ing for  true  religious  liberty  to  the  Moslem  as  well  as 
to  others,  which  is  not  as  yet  fully  granted,  even  under 
the  new  constitutional  regime ;  many  are  praying  for 
guidance  and  strength  amid  overshadowing  and  ap- 
palling difficulties  in  the  path  of  open  and  sincere  con- 
fession. They  are  for  the  first  time  in  their  history  be- 
ginning to  see  Christianity  to  advantage,  and  to  recog- 
nize it  in  its  pure  and  spiritual  as  distinguished  from  its 
lapsed  form. 

This  transforming  and  leavening  process  of  thought 
in  such  a  mighty  and  compact  mass  as  Islam  defies  all 
attempt  at  description,  and  eludes  all  effort  to  formulate 
it  in  statistics.  Everything  in  this  region  of  indirect 
missionary  work  is  tentative,  intangible,  preparatory  ; 
results  are  in  a  state  of  solution  ;  spiritual  forces  are 
hiding  in  awakened  hearts ;  conviction  lies  in  ambush 
and  bides  its  time  ;  the  silent  prayer,  the  patient  hope, 
the  quiet  hour  with  the  Bible,  the  conscious  thrill  of  a 
new-found  liberty  of  conscience — prudently  concealed, 
it  may  be,  and  carefully  restrained  as  yet, — perhaps 
the  touch  of  faith  upon  the  hem  of  Christ's  garment 
in  the  case  of  some  unnoticed  ones  in  the  surging 
throng,  are  the  only  signs  of  the  presence  of  the  living 


Islam  and  Christian  Missions  237 

Gospel.  God  is  merciful  to  those  who  "  wait  for  the 
morning,"  while  yet  unable  to  break  altogether  from 
their  spiritual  bondage.  Many  a  soul  sings  its  song  of 
deliverance  in  the  silence  and  seclusion  of  its  own 
heart's  sanctuary  before  the  voice  of  the  multitude  can 
be  heard  around  the  shrine  of  a  larger  and  wider  na- 
tional freedom. 

America — where  God  has  made  the  consciences  of  all 
men  free — is  furnishing,  I  firmly  believe,  a  large  part 
of  the  spiritual  and  intellectual  forces  which  will  secure 
the  blessing  of  religious  liberty  to  the  Moslem  world. 
God  will  work  with  other  and  sterner  agencies,  as  his- 
tory testifies,  and  as  recent  events  demonstrate  ;  diplo- 
macy will  at  times  be  subsidized  to  do  His  bidding,  and 
armies  sometimes  will  be  made  to  act  as  His  instru- 
ments. In  an  era  of  political  and  moral  [transitions, 
however,  the  preparation  of  a  race  for  the  apprecia- 
tion and  proper  use  of  freedom,  and  the  provision  of 
the  religious  and  educational  facilities  for  the  growth 
and  culture  of  natures  introduced  into  new  regions  of 
thought,  to  fresh  revelations  of  truth,  and  unfamiliar 
relations  to  the  Deity,  are  spheres  of  service  second  to 
none  which  God  can  commission  one  nation  to  do  for 
another.  Let  the  Church  of  Christ  be  patient,  as  she 
can  well  afford  to  be.  This  sublime  task  will  require  a 
large  outlay  of  sacrifice  and  labour,  and  may  yet  cost 
a  struggle  which  will  tax  the  faith  and  fortitude  of 
Christianity.  There  are  already  abundant  indications 
that  Islam  will  make  strenuous  endeavours  to  maintain 
its  ascendency,  and  will  resist  vigorously  every  attempt 
which  Christianity  may  make  to  break  its  ranks. 
Protestant  mission  work  in  the  Turkish  Empire  is,  and 
has  been  from  the  beginning,  largely  in  the  hands  of 


238  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

American  missionaries.  Syria — and  I  may  say  the  en- 
tire Turkish  Empire — is  a  strategic  point  in  the  spiritual 
conflicts  of  the  Church  militant.  Islam,  with  its  polit- 
ical and  military  supremacy,  and  Oriental  Christianity, 
with  its  vigilant  and  powerful  hierarchy,  are  in  common 
antagonism  to  evangelical  missions,  which  have  entered 
the  Orient  as  the  teacher  of  Biblical  truth,  and  the  ad- 
vocate of  liberal  education.  Into  this  historic  field, 
which  calls  for  a  heroic  measure  of  faith,  patience,  for- 
titude, and  sacrifice,  God  has  called  our  American 
Churches  to  enter.  The  West,  in  its  happy  career  of 
prosperity  and  progress,  must  not  forget  the  East, 
whence  came  the  sweetest  and  noblest  forces  of  our 
social  and  religious  life.  A  clarion  call  speaking  as 
never  man  spake,  with  an  authority  which  none  can 
question,  came  to  us  out  of  the  East  with  the  dawn  of 
Christian  history — "Go  ye  into  all  the  world,  and 
preach  the  Gospel  to  every  creature."  This  is  the  ear- 
liest, as  it  is  the  latest,  message  of  the  skies  to  the  fol- 
lowers of  "  His  star  in  the  East."  This  is  the  message 
of  the  hour. 

We  must  not  fail,  however,  as  the  prompting  of  both 
wisdom  and  courtesy,  to  give  to  Islam  all  the  credit  it 
deserves  ;  to  acknowledge  its  influence  in  the  world  as 
an  anti-heathen  reform  ;  to  place  it  high  in  the  scale  of 
historic  failures  on  the  part  of  human  wisdom  to  estab- 
lish a  religion  to  supersede  the  Gospel ;  to  acknowledge 
its  skillful  adaptation  to  an  Oriental  constituency ;  to 
recognize  the  truth  which  it  contains,  and  the  natural 
basis  which  it  affords  for  a  work  of  supernatural  grace 
and  spiritual  enlightenment  through  the  revealed  Word 
applied  by  the  Spirit ;  to  recognize  every  excellence  of 
personal  character  which  may  be  found  in  individual 


Islam  and  Christian  Missions  239 

Moslems  of  the  more  serious  and  devout  type.  No  one 
can  do  all  this  more  easily  than  a  Christian  missionary 
living  in  Moslem  lands.  When,  however,  it  comes  to 
the  question  of  the  duty  and  responsibility  of  a  religious 
teacher,  every  consideration  of  loyalty  and  high  obliga- 
tion requires  him  to  teach  only  the  Gospel  of  his  Divine 
Master.  This  is  his  supreme  privilege,  his  sublime 
mission,  and  his  inexorable  task.  No  Christian  mission- 
ary is  sent  to  the  Moslem  world  to  establish  a  treaty  of 
peace  with  Islam.  He  is  sent  there  to  carry  the  good 
news  of  salvation  to  the  Moslem.  He  is  God's  mes- 
senger to  a  people  estranged  from  Christ  and  bereft  of 
His  Gospel.  The  preaching  of  the  Cross,  which,  of 
course,  is  an  offense  to  the  Moslem,  as  it  was  to  Jew 
and  Gentile  of  old,  is  the  very  business  which  brings 
him  there.  He  must  endeavour  to  accomplish  this 
delicate  mission  with  tact  and  wisdom,  and  must  be 
patient,  courteous,  and  courageous,  making  his  appeal 
kindly,  lovingly,  and  gently  to  the  higher  nature  of 
Moslems  ;  but  he  has  not  the  slightest  authority  from 
God  or  man  to  depart  from  his  instructions,  or  to  enter 
into  any  questionable  compromises.  He  is  an  ambas- 
sador of  the  Cross,  not  an  apologist  for  the  Crescent. 

"  The  Moon  of  Mahomet 
Arose,  and  it  shall  set : 
While  blazoned  as  on  heaven's  immortal  noon 
The  Cross  leads  generations  on. n 

The  question  of  method  is,  no  doubt,  a  pressing  one, 
and  upon  this  point  Christian  missionaries  all  over  the 
world  are  seeking  guidance,  and  would  be  grateful  for 
light.  One  thing,  however,  is  certain  ;  no  method  can 
be  tolerated  which  lowers  the  standards  of  the  Gospel, 


240  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

or  compromises  its  truths,  or  places  a  human  religion  on 
the  same  plane  with  the  one  divine  religion ;  nothing 
violent,  or  of  the  nature  of  an  attack  upon  the  conscience 
will  avail ;  nor  would  such  a  method  be  fruitful  in  any 
results  of  solid  or  permanent  value. 

This  is  most  assuredly  the  spirit  of  all  our  American 
missionaries  in  the  Orient.  They  look  to  the  Christian 
Churches  at  home  to  sustain  and  encourage  them  in  this 
theory  of  Christian  missions  to  Mohammedans.  They 
hope  for  the  sympathy  and  prayers  of  Christ's  people 
as  they  endeavour  to  work  upon  these  lines.  It  is  time 
for  the  Christian  public  of  America  to  be  intelligently 
and  profoundly  interested  in  the  religious  development 
of  Oriental  nations,  and  especially  in  the  problem  of 
the  relation  of  Christianity  to  Islam,  and  the  duty  of 
the  Church  of  Christ  to  Moslems.  Let  us  study  this 
question  in  the  light  of  history,  and  with  a  living 
sympathy  in  the  welfare  of  200,000,000  of  our  race. 
Consider  the  desperate  nature  of  the  undertaking,  and 
how  the  honour  of  Christ  is  involved  throughout  the 
whole  Eastern  world.  "Watch  the  developments  of  the 
Eastern  question  as  one  which  holds  in  focus  the  most 
burning  problems  of  European  diplomacy.  Note  the 
rapid  movements  of  European  governments  in  taking 
possession  of  the  territory  of  Africa,  more  than  one-half 
of  which  is  now  in  their  control.  "Watch  the  tightening 
grip  of  Christian  civilization  upon  the  African  slave- 
trade,  which  has  been  almost  entirely  the  work  of  Arab 
Mohammedans.  Note  the  marvellous  political  transfor- 
mations in  the  centres  of  Moslem  power — in  Turkey, 
Persia,  and  Egypt.  Study  the  far-reaching  significance 
of  the  recent  Balkan  War.  Take  a  broad  outlook  over 
the  field  where  are  gathered  the  momentous  interests 


Islam  and  Christian  Missions  241 

involved  in  this  Mohammedan  problem,  and  let  ns  have 
the  prayers  of  Christendom  in  the  interests  of  Christ's 
kingdom  and  its  blessed  reign.  Within  the  memory  of 
living  men  the  Christian  Church  was  praying  for  open 
doors  in  Asia,  and  throughout  the  heathen  world.  To- 
day the  Church  is  sending  her  missionaries  through  a 
thousand  avenues  into  the  heart  of  heathendom.  Let 
us  have  another  triumph  of  prayer.  If  the  Church  of 
Christ  will  march  around  this  mighty  fortress  of  the 
Mohammedan  faith,  sounding  her  silver  trumpets  of 
prayer,  it  will  not  be  long  before,  by  some  intervention 
of  divine  power,  it  will  be  overthrown.  Let  it  be  one 
of  the  watchwords  of  our  Church  in  these  opening  dec- 
ades of  the  twentieth  century  that  Christ,  the  Child  of 
the  Orient,  and  the  divine  Heir  of  her  tribes  and  king- 
doms, shall  possess  His  inheritance.  The  Moslem  world 
shall  be  open  to  the  gracious  entrance  of  the  Saviour, 
and  the  triumphs  of  the  Gospel.  The  spell  of  twelve 
centuries  shall  be  broken.  That  voice  from  the  Arabian 
desert  shall  no  longer  say  to  the  Church  of  the  Living 
God — thus  far,  and  no  further.  The  deep  and  sad 
delusions  which  shadow  the  intellectual  and  spiritual 
life  of  so  many  millions  of  our  fellow-men  shall  be  dis- 
pelled, and  the  purifying,  life-giving  power  of  Christ's 
religion  shall  at  last  win  the  Moslem  heart  and  open  to 
it  a  nobler  pathway  of  moral  victory  here  and  here- 
after. 


XII 

The  American  Missionary  in  the  Near  East 


The  one  great  characteristic  of  the  Moslem  world  to-day  is  unrest. 
Like  the  prodigal  son  in  the  parable,  Islam  is  coming  to  itself  and  is  be- 
coming conscious  of  its  need.  Three  great  movements  in  the  Moslem 
world  at  the  present  time  are  all  of  them  indicative  of  this  unrest — the 
development  of  the  great  dervish  orders,  the  growth  of  the  pan-Islamic 
spirit,  and  the  attempt  of  the  new  Islam  to  rationalize  the  old  orthodoxy — 
all  of  them  due  to  the  same  cause,  namely,  the  readjustment  of  Islam  to 
the  progress  of  modern  thought  and  Western  civilization,  either  by  way  of 
protest  and  defiance,  or  of  accommodation  and  compromise.     .     .     . 

The  modernist  movement,  as  Mr.  Gairdner  showed  in  his  address  at 
the  Edinburgh  Conference,  touches  every  Moslem  who  receives  education 
on  Western  lines,  whether  in  Java,  India,  Persia,  or  Egypt,  and  compels 
him  to  adopt  a  new  theology  and  a  new  philosophy  and  new  social  stand, 
ards,  or  give  up  his  religion  altogether. 

Islam  to-day  must  meet  a  new  crisis  in  its  history.  The  disintegration 
of  the  whole  system  is  rapidly  proceeding,  and  may  result,  as  it  already 
has,  in  the  rise  of  new  sects,  or  in  an  attempt  to  rejuvenate  the  system  by 
abandoning  much  of  that  which  was  formerly  considered  essential.  What 
will  be  the  result  ?  As  Dr.  William  A.  Shedd  points  out :  "  Islam  is 
everywhere  coming  into  close  contact  with  modern  thought  and  civiliza- 
tion. It  must  meet  these  changed  conditions  if  it  is  to  live,  and  the  ques- 
tion arises  whether  it  can  do  this  or  not."  Will  it  be  possible  to  march 
with  the  current  of  civilization,  and  continue  to  hold  the  teaching  of  the 
Koran  and  the  Traditions  ? 

Samuel  M.  Zwemer,  D.  D. 


XII 

THE  AMERICAN  MISSIONARY  IN  THE  NEAR 

EAST1 

THE  missionary  in  the  Near  as  well  as  the  Far 
East  is  just  now  somewhat  to  the  front.  His 
presence  in  the  world  is  nothing  new,  but  the 
attention  he  is  attracting  at  present  is  phenomenal. 
He  figures  largely  in  the  religious,  and  even  in  the 
secular  press,  with  a  not  inconspicuous  place  in  the 
foreign  telegrams.  He  is  in  many  of  the  monthlies,  and 
now  and  then  in  the  quarterlies.  He  is  frequently  a 
subject  of  comment  in  books  of  travel  and  exploration. 
He  appears  in  the  role  of  a  foreign  correspondent,  and 
is  on  the  platforms  of  religious  conventions  at  home,  and 
in  the  pulpits  of  our  churches.  The  missionary's  contri- 
butions to  various  departments  of  knowledge  are  grow- 
ing into  a  serviceable  library.  He  has  a  remarkable 
following  of  monthly  reviews  and  magazines,  which 
claim  to  be  exclusively  devoted  to  the  cause  he  repre- 
sents, and  circle  about  him  and  the  work  he  is  doing. 
He  handles  many  millions  of  dollars  annually,  and 
requires  societies  and  boards  and  secretaries  and  treas- 
urers, and  in  some  circumstances  even  ambassadors 
and  consuls,  to  give  him  advice  and  support.  He  is 
dined,  and  comes  near  being  wined  also,  at  some  of  the 
most  coveted  tables  at  home  and  abroad.  He  is  in 
many  cases  trusted  and  honoured  by  the  rulers  of  foreign 

1  The  Missionary  Review  of  the  World,  November,  1889. 
245 


246  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

countries,  and  has  a  remarkable  influence  in  the  social, 
intellectual,  moral,  and  religious  development  of  the 
awakened  nations  of  the  East.  He  is  sometimes  an 
obscure  or  indirect  factor  in  politics  and  commerce, 
although  usually  he  gives  close  attention  to  his  own 
special  business. 

Personally  he  is  an  object  of  considerable  scrutiny 
and  comment,  which,  although  usually  favourable,  is 
sometimes  quite  otherwise.  What  he  is  doing,  how  he 
lives,  what  he  accomplishes,  whether  he  has  any  busi- 
ness to  be  where  he  is,  whether  he  is  faithful  in  his 
duty,  and  cheerfully  ready,  if  occasion  requires,  for 
martyrdom,  whether  he  is  "  having  an  easy  time  of  it," 
or  enduring  the  requisite  amount  of  hardship,  whether 
he  is  married  or  single,  whether  he  has  children,  and 
what  he  is  going  to  do  with  them,  whether  he  rides  in 
a  "  pony  carriage,"  or  walks,  whether  he  has  copies  of 
the  Century,  the  Independent,  or  the  Outlook  on  his 
table,  whether  he  has  too  many  "  comforts,"  whether 
he  has  any  "  culture,"  and  how  much  ;  does  he  dare  to 
be  wealthy,  or  allow  loving  hearts  at  home  to  brighten 
his  exile  with  a  few  "  alabaster  boxes  "  from  Tiffany's 
or  Steinway's — in  short,  is  he  to  be  recognized  or  re- 
pudiated ;  is  he  genuine,  or  is  he  a  fraud  ;  is  he  a  "  suc- 
cess," or  is  he  a  "  failure  "  ?  Such  are  some  of  the 
minor  currents  of  thought  which  seem  to  drift  into  lit- 
tle whirlpools  about  him. 

In  the  meanwhile,  the  missionary  goes  quietly  and 
patiently  on  with  his  work,  than  which,  for  serious  re- 
sponsibility, far-reaching  influence,  fragrance  of  spirit, 
charm  of  unselfish  love,  and  power  of  uplifting  and 
transforming  energy,  we  know  no  higher  and  sweeter 
task  for  loving  hearts  to  plan,  and  human  hands  to  do. 


The  American  Missionary  in  the  Near  East  .  247 

He  is  unmoved  by  criticisms,  undismayed  by  diffi- 
culties, undaunted  in  purpose,  unflinching  in  his  loyalty 
to  the  sublime  commission  he  holds  from  those  pierced 
hands  which  rule  the  ages.  He  believes  in  a  whole 
world  of  possibilities  for  this  present  existence,  and  in 
better  and  sweeter  hopes  which  under  certain  condi- 
tions may  brighten  the  future  of  even  the  most  mis- 
guided and  depraved  souls.  He  is  confident  of  a  com- 
ing triumph  which  will  thrill  and  gladden  the  world. 
"We  have  spoken  of  the  welcome  he  receives  from 
rulers  and  high  officials  in  many  of  the  countries 
whither  he  goes,  but  this  is  not  always  the  case.  In 
some  lands  his  work  has  been  stoutly  opposed,  and  he 
himself  is  not  now  altogether  welcome,  but  is  regarded 
with  considerable  distrust  and  disfavour.  What  to  do 
with  the  missionary  has  become  more  and  more  a  press- 
ing problem  in  Turkish  official  circles.  Where  did  he 
come  from  ?  Who  sent  him  here  ?  What  is  his  busi- 
ness ?  How  did  he  get  so  thoroughly  at  home  among 
the  people  ?  How  has  he  accomplished  so  much  be- 
fore we  knew  what  he  was  about  ?  What  is  to  be  the 
outcome  of  his  work,  and  what  is  the  best  way  to  deal 
with  him  ?  These  have  been  for  many  years  questions 
of  both  State  and  Church  at  the  Ottoman  Porte.  The 
missionary,  in  fact,  seems  to  have  unconsciously  ar- 
ranged a  sort  of  "  surprise  part}'  "  to  Turkish  official- 
dom, and,  as  is  often  the  case  in  those  well-intended  af- 
fairs, the  party  surprised  is  somewhat  embarrassed  by 
the  excess  and  variety  of  the  gifts  thrust  upon  him. 
In  the  traditions  of  the  Ottoman  Foreign  Office  there 
has  never  appeared  a  hint  or  a  warning  of  an  Ameri- 
can invasion.  In  the  Rogues'  Gallery  of  Turkey,  al- 
though we  may  find  pretty  much  every  type  of  Euro- 


248  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

pean  and  Asiatic  physiognomy,  there  is  no  portrait  of 
the  American  missionary,  or  his  English  colleague. 
The  natives  of  India  are  said  to  look  upon  Englishmen 
as  "  very  uncomfortable  works  of  God."  We  suspect 
the  Moslem  officials  of  Turkey,  for  a  generation  or 
more,  were  they  to  speak  their  minds  freely,  would 
pronounce  the  missionary  to  be  a  painful  eccentricity  of 
Providence,  by  which  their  customary  spirit  of  resigna- 
tion to  the  dispensations  of  divine  sovereignty  has  been 
sorely  taxed.  Let  us  distinguish  here  sharply  between 
the  views  of  Turkish  officials  and  the  Christian  (and  to 
some  extent  even  the  Mohammedan)  populations  of 
Turkey,  for  among  the  latter  the  missionary,  as  the 
purpose  of  his  work  has  become  more  fully  known  and 
its  benefits  recognized,  has  won  for  himself  a  warm  and 
grateful  welcome.  It  is  in  both  Moslem  and  Christian 
circles  chiefly  the  political  and  religious  hierarchies 
rather  than  the  people  who  have  opposed  him. 

Sixty  years  ago,  and  all  was  going  on  well.  The 
Turkish  authorities  ruled  in  Church  and  State  with  un- 
questioned supremacy ;  the  Moslem  was  in  his  lofty 
position  of  religious,  social,  intellectual,  and  political 
dignity,  and  the  Christian  was  in  his  rightful  and 
proper  condition  of  humiliation.  It  was  the  Moslem's 
role  to  tolerate  and  endure.  It  was  the  Christian's 
privilege  to  exist,  and  his  only  safety  was  to  bear  with 
abject  submission  whatever  injury  or  indignity  the 
Moslem  chose  to  inflict  upon  him.  Christian  commu- 
nities were  permitted  to  maintain  their  religious  inde- 
pendence under  the  limited  control  of  their  hierarchies, 
provided  they  paid  tribute,  and  kept  within  bounds, 
and  meekly  attended  to  their  own  affairs.  They  were 
not  to  make  any  aggressive  effort  to  get  on,  or  improve 


The  American  Missionary  in  the  Near  East    249 

their  condition,  or  assert  their  existence ;  much  less  to 
enter  into  any  competition  with  the  Moslem  in  any 
sphere  of  life.  The  idea  of  any  effort  on  the  part  of 
the  Christian  to  convert  the  Moslem,  or  even  argue  the 
matter  of  religion  with  him,  was  too  dangerous  and 
absurd  to  be  thought  of.  To  this  day  Oriental  Chris- 
tians are  not  attracted  by  this  project,  and  are  disposed 
to  allow  the  Moslem  an  undisturbed  opportunity  to 
work  out  his  own  salvation. 

The  advent  of  the  Protestant  missionary  has  brought 
remarkable  changes  in  many  directions.  His  influence 
at  first  was  not  discovered.  He  was  at  work  many 
years  before  the  Turk  realized  he  was  there.  He 
established  his  schools,  made  the  acquaintance  of  the 
people,  gathered  his  congregations,  translated  his 
Bibles,  trained  his  native  helpers,  prepared  religious 
and  educational  books,  circulated  his  tracts,  stimu- 
lated thought,  awakened  inquiry,  carried  conviction 
to  many  hearts,  and  sent  the  thrill  of  a  new  life 
through  the  stagnant  East,  and  it  was  not  until  his 
work  had  assumed  large  proportions,  with  permanent 
buildings,  and  rapidly  growing  apparatus,  and  far- 
reaching  influence,  that  the  Turk  became  aroused  and 
restless.  He  awakened  slowly,  and  rubbed  his  eyes 
lazily,  and  has  even  taken  fragmentary  naps  in  the 
process,  while  now  and  then  he  has  hurled  his  arms 
wildly  about  as  if  determined  to  hurt  somebody  or 
break  something,  until  in  the  closing  years  of  the  reign 
of  Abd-ul-Hamid  his  restlessness  and  alarm  developed 
into  aggressive  hostility.  Since  the  revolution  of  1908, 
missions  have  been  conscious  of  a  kindlier  atmosphere 
on  the  part  of  the  government.  Constitutional  reforms 
have  brought  about  a  more  tolerant  attitude  on  the 


250  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

part  of  those  in  authority,  and,  while  the  new  Turkish 
regime  has  not  yet  advanced  beyond  the  experimental 
stage,  and  is  still  chargeable  with  much  injustice  and 
misgovernment,  yet  it  opened  a  wider  door  of  oppor- 
tunity to  missions  than  has  been  known  in  the  past. 

If  the  official  Turk  of  to-day  should  take  the  pains 
to  survey  the  ground  carefully,  omitting  for  political 
reasons  Bulgaria,  Macedonia,  and  Egypt,  he  would  find 
approximately  250  churches,  80,000  Protestants,  21,000 
communicants,  and  would  be  obliged  to  take  note  of  an 
average  annual  increase  of  about  1,000  to  the  member- 
ship of  the  mission  churches. 

He  would  find,  all  told,  including  the  English  and 
German  missionaries  residing  chiefly  in  Palestine,  and 
the  Kaisers werth  Sisters,  about  750  foreigners,  male 
and  female,  engaged  in  mission  work  within  the  bounds 
of  the  empire.  Of  these,  122  are  ordained  ministers  of 
the  Gospel,  and  144:  are  medical  and  lay  missionaries, 
who,  with  their  wives,  and  over  300  single  ladies,  make 
up  the  total,  of  which  probably  four-fifths  are  Ameri- 
cans. He  would  light  upon  about  six  hundred  local- 
ities where  mission  work  is  visibly  established,  and 
from  which  it  radiates.  He  would  find  not  less  than 
2,200  native  assistants  engaged  in  the  employ  of  these 
foreigners,  many  of  them  educated  and  accomplished 
preachers  and  teachers. 

He  would  visit  ten  foreign  colleges,  some  of  them 
well  endowed,  and  occupying  permanent  buildings,  and 
representing  an  investment  of  American  money,  if  we 
include  some  recent  large  gifts  for  buildings  and  en- 
dowments, of  not  less  than  $4,500,000.  Two  of  them 
are  located  at  Constantinople,  and  others  at  Marsovan, 
Harpoot,  Aintab,  Marash,  Smyrna,  Tarsus,  Beirut,  and 


The  American  Missionary  in  the  Near  East    251 

Jerusalem.  He  would  listen  to  the  roll-call  of  about 
3,000  names,  as  these  college  students  gathered  at  their 
accustomed  places.  He  would  find  them  studying  the 
ordinary  branches  of  a  higher  liberal  education,  with 
some  of  them  pursuing  advanced  professional  courses — 
at  present  about  158  in  medicine,  and  thirty  in  theology, 
not  forgetting  Schools  of  Industrial  Training,  Engi- 
neering, Pharmacy,  Dentistry,  and  Commerce.  He 
would  find  them  peering  into  science,  turning  over 
history,  scanning  the  record  of  the  House  of  Othman, 
weighing  creeds  in  the  balances,  studying  the  Bible, 
listening  to  the  Gospel,  receiving  helpful  and  invigorat- 
ing moral  influences,  having  their  lives  shaped  and 
guided  by  the  truth  of  God  and  the  inspiration  of  His 
Spirit,  and  growing  into  a  type  of  manliness  and 
culture  that  the  Turk  has  never  yet  seen  in  his  empire. 
Having  finished  with  the  colleges,  our  Turkish  official 
could  be  escorted  to  about  seven  hundred  schools  of  all 
grades,  with  over  45,000  pupils  in  attendance.  He 
could  visit  the  mission  presses,  where  50,000,000  pages 
were  printed  last  year,  and  issued  in  the  shape  of 
Bibles,  religious  and  educational  works,  tracts,  news- 
papers, Sunday-school  lessons,  leaflets,  etc.  There  are 
issued  by  the  various  missions  four  weekly  and  four 
monthly  papers,  the  latter  mostly  for  Sabbath-school 
children.  Upon  the  catalogue  of  the  mission  press  in 
I  Beirut  are  700  separate  publications.  The  medical 
missionary  work  must  not  be  passed  by.  Fully  two 
hundred  thousand  patients  are  treated  annually,  if  we 
include  the  medical  work  of  twenty-six  societies,  and  the 
thirty-five  hospitals  and  forty-four  dispensaries  of 
i  British,  German,  and  American  missions.  In  these 
,  days  of  the  new  constitutional  regime,  and  more  en- 


252  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

lightened  progress,  he  would  find  an  enthusiasm  for 
education  gathering  inspiration  and  forceful  purpose 
throughout  the  whole  empire. 

If  the  influence  of  these  missionary  activities  had 
been  confined  to  the  Oriental  Christian  communities, 
the  Turkish  Government  would  probably  not  have 
been  disturbed.  The  authorities  seem  to  have  had  at 
times,  however,  grave  suspicions  that  Moslems  were 
being  reached  and  influenced.  Bibles  and  tracts,  and 
other  volumes  of  mission  literature,  were  circulating 
among  them ;  their  children  were  attending  mission 
schools;  a  desire  for  education  was  springing  up;  a 
spirit  of  inquiry  was  manifest ;  conversions  were  occur- 
ring here  and  there  ;  a  secret  tendency  toward  liberal 
views  cropped  out  in  some  quarters ;  the  Ottoman 
Dynasty,  representing  the  usurped  Turkish  Khalifat, 
became  conscious  that  its  official  grip,  both  religious 
and  military,  was  being  loosened  upon  not  only  the 
loosely  allied  sects  or  semi-Mohammedan  nationalities  of 
the  empire,  as  the  Druse,  Nusairiyeh,  and  Metawaleh, 
but  upon  the  Moslems  of  the  Arab  stock,  also,  residing 
in  Syria,  Palestine,  Arabia,  and  Egypt. 

It  must  have  been  also  a  very  disquieting  reflection 
that  other  agencies,  entirely  independent  of  all  mis- 
sionary operations,  and  from  an  entirely  different  quar- 
ter, have  been  at  work  during  the  last  fifty  years,  all 
pushing  steadily  in  one  direction,  viz  :  the  political  dis- 
memberment of  his  empire,  and  the  introduction  of  re- 
forms in  the  interest  of  his  Christian  subjects  through- 
out the  Levant.  Bosnia,  Herzegovina,  Montenegro, 
Servia,  Rumania,  Bulgaria,  and  Eastern  Rumelia 
have  been  cut  off  from  the  northern  section  of  the 
Balkan  Peninsula.     Greece  won  her  independence,  and 


The  American  Missionary  in  the  Near  East    253 

by  later  changes  in  her  frontier  has  included  Thessaly 
in  her  dominion.  Russia  secured  a  small  section  of 
northeastern  Asia  Minor,  including  Kars,  Batum,  and 
Ardahan,  and  will  be  ready  again  at  the  first  favour- 
able opportunity  to  unsheath  her  sword  for  further 
possessions.  Mount  Lebanon,  after  a  welter  of  mas- 
sacre and  pillage,  was  made  in  1861  a  Christian  prov- 
ince, under  the  protection  of  the  European  Powers. 
Syria  might  easily  become  a  French  or  possibly  a  Brit- 
ish Protectorate,  should  any  circumstances  occur  to 
render  such  a  move  possible.  Palestine,  and  especially 
Jerusalem,  is  tacitly  in  foreign  control,  as  the  Turk  can 
hardly  walk  the  streets  of  the  Holy  City  without  coming 
in  contact  with  Europe.  Costly  Russian  buildings  have 
gone  up  at  Jerusalem,  and  the  Powers  of  Europe  keep 
vigilant  guard  over  every  square  inch  of  property  in 
the  holy  places.  A  railway  is  now  operated  from  Jaffa 
to  Jerusalem,  so  that  our  modern  pilgrim  buys  an  "  ex- 
cursion ticket "  to  Jerusalem,  and  gets  his  "  luggage 
booked  "  for  the  Holy  City.  "What  an  intrusion  of  the 
twentieth  century  to  have  a  modern  locomotive  puffing 
up  Mount  Zion,  and  to  have  pilgrims  entrain  for 
Mecca !  Railroad  enterprise  has  pushed  its  way  also 
into  the  empire  at  several  other  strategic  points. 

The  Arabs  of  the  Arabian  Peninsula,  where  they  are 
not  entirely  independent,  are  restless  and  rebellious. 
The  mysterious  Mahdi  lurks  in  the  Sudan,  and  is  a 
constant  menace  to  the  Ottoman  Khalifat.  From  the 
days  of  Mohammed- Ali,  Egypt  has  been  only  a  nom- 
inal vassal,  and  now  England  is  in  possession,  and 
Allah  alone  knows  if  she  will  ever  move  out.  Cyprus, 
off  the  coast  of  Asia  Minor,  and  twelve  hours  from 
Syria,  is  under  the  English  flag.     Algiers  and  Tunis 


254  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

have  gone  to  France,  and  Tripoli  is  consigned  to  Italy. 
The  Black  Sea  is  still  a  Kussian  lake,  in  defiance  of 
the  Treaty  of  Paris.  The  splendid  "  Orient-Express  " 
train,  without  change  of  cars  from  Paris  to  Constanti- 
nople, has  been,  until  the  Balkan  War  blocked  the  line, 
travelling  the  whole  length  of  the  Balkan  Peninsula, 
until  it  stops  within  the  shadow  of  the  Sublime  Porte. 
A  branch  line  to  Salonica  is  also  in  use.  The  Turkish 
ironclads  lie  in  the  Golden  Horn,  and  count  for  little  in 
either  aggression  or  defense. 

The  constitutional  regime,  though  alert  and  forceful 
in  its  foreign  policy,  has  not  proved  in  its  management 
of  the  internal  affairs  of  the  empire  such  an  improve- 
ment upon  the  traditional  system  of  the  past  as  we 
were  led  to  expect.  The  year  1912  has  now  brought  a 
stunning  political  and  military  surprise  to  Turkey. 
She  has  been  defeated  before  by  European  PoAvers,  but 
to  be  overthrown  and  humiliated  by  the  despised 
Balkan  nations  seems  the  acme  of  calamity,  and  has 
turned  out  to  be  a  climax  of  ruin  and  suffering.  It  is 
no  doubt  true  that  the  constitutional  form  of  govern- 
ment had  hardly  as  yet  been  appreciated  by  the  Mos- 
lem masses,  and  with  them  patriotism  was  still  summed 
up  in  the  old  Islamic  spirit  of  religious  fanaticism. 
They  were,  therefore,  fighting  but  half-heartedly  for 
their  government,  and  did  not  fully  realize  that  they 
were  contending  as  the  defenders  of  the  Khalifat  and 
the  saviours  of  Islam  from  loss  of  prestige  and  power. 
This  lukewarm  attitude  was,  moreover,  intensified  by 
the  discovery  of  shameful  neglect  on  the  part  of  the 
government  which  should  have  provisioned  and  cared 
for  them  amid  the  dread  contingencies  of  battle.  The 
foe    they    faced    was    thoroughly    prepared,     fully 


The  American  Missionary  in  the  Near  East    255 

equipped,  amply  provided  for  in  commissariat  and  in 
hospital  facilities,  and  was  fighting  with  desperate  de- 
termination for  deliverance  from  intolerable  conditions, 
for  national  recovery,  and  for  a  long-delayed  dream  of 
empire.  The  result  has  been  from  one  point  of  view  a 
desolating  tragedy,  but  from  another  the  fruition  of  a 
long-cherished  hope. 

Yet,  despite  these  changes  and  overturnings,  Turkey 
will  no  doubt  still  exercise  an  efficient  control  over  her 
political  and  religious  interests.  Nothing  which  was 
done,  either  by  the  great  ambassador,  Sir  Stratford 
Canning,  afterward  Lord  Stratford  de  Redcliffe,  who 
was  prominent  at  the  Porte  from  1812  to  1858,  or  by 
the  united  diplomatic  efforts  of  Europe  since  then,  has 
ever  secured  the  slightest  recognition  on  the  part  of 
the  Turkish  Government  of  the  liberty  of  the  Moslem 
to  change  his  creed.  The  Hatti-Sharif  of  Gulhane  in 
1839  which  has  been  called  the  Turkish  Magna  Charta, 
— the  Hatti-Humayun  in  1856,  the  Treaty  of  Berlin 
in  1878,  all  of  which,  so  far  as  they  refer  to  the  Chris- 
tian subjects  of  the  Porte,  amount  in  substance  to  a 
declaration  on  the  part  of  Turkey  that  she  will  give 
entire  religious  liberty,  and  full  toleration  and  equal 
rights,  to  all  her  subjects,  if  Europe  will  not  meddle, 
have  never  for  an  instant  been  acknowledged  by  the 
Turk  as  referring  to  the  Moslem,  or  recognized  as  se- 
curing to  him  any  liberty  of  conscience  whatever. 
Every  time  a  Christian  diplomat,  or  a  missionary  or- 
ganization, or  even  the  united  corps  of  European 
ambassadors  at  Constantinople,  has  quoted  these  or  any 
other  official  utterances  of  the  Turkish  Government 
in  behalf  of  a  Moslem's  liberty  to  accept  Christianity, 
the  Turkish  authorities,  from  the  Sultan   downward, 


256  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

have  either  repudiated  the  idea,  or  quietly  and  effect- 
ively snubbed  it.  The  old  Moslem  law  which  inflicts  a 
heavy  penalty  on  apostasy  is  still  practically  operative 
though  secretly  executed.  No  concession  as  to  the 
right  of  a  Moslem  to  embrace  Christianity  is  a  part  of 
either  the  written  or  unwritten  code  of  the  New  Tur- 
key, although  freedom  of  worship  is  announced. 

If  we  seek  for  the  reason  for  this  inflexible  adher- 
ence to  the  old  Mohammedan  rule,  we  find  it  in  the  in- 
stinct of  self-preservation,  and  also  in  the  undying 
spirit  of  Islamic  pride  and  fanaticism.  Turkey  is  on 
the  defensive.  Islam  sees  that  if  is  a  struggle  for  exist- 
ence. The  Turk  has  discovered  that  as  things  are  now 
tending  he  will  go  to  the  wall,  and  Moslems  will  be  left 
behind  in  the  race.  The  Christian  communities  have 
been  coming  forward  so  rapidly  in  wealth  and  numbers, 
and  rising  so  conspicuously  to  positions  of  social 
respectability,  education,  influence,  refinement,  and 
general  culture,  that  the  Moslem  feels  himself  to  be 
sadly  behind  the  times,  and  out  of  date.  While  he 
clings  to  his  religion,  and  to  the  old  Islamic  traditions 
and  practices,  he  cannot  compete  with  the  Christian  in 
the  race  of  civilization  and  improvement.  He  must, 
therefore,  by  all  means  at  his  command,  strive  to  set 
back  this  rising  tide  of  missionary  stimulus  and  help- 
fulness to  subject  Christian  races,  and  especially  take 
stringent  measures  to  prevent  the  Mohammedan  con- 
stituency of  the  empire  from  coming  at  all  within  the 
range  of  its  movement. 

The  Turkish  Government,  representing  both  Church 
and  State,  is  reluctant  to  allow,  and  cannot  ignore  a 
social  and  religious  revolution  of  this  kind.  Islam 
must  not  lose  its  proud  position  ;  its  prestige  and  glory 


The  American  Missionary  in  the  Near  East    257 

must  not  be  dimmed.  Liberality,  so  the  Moslem 
reasons,  would  be  fatal  to  both  Church  and  State. 
Islam  must  claim  and  perpetuate  its  supremacy  as  of 
old.  Concessions  to  Christianity  are  disparagements  to 
Islam.  The  Sultan  himself  cannot  make  them  without 
putting  himself  in  danger.  Christianity  can  be  and  has 
been  tolerated  in  Christians  just  as  many  other  annoy- 
ances are  submitted  to  because  one  cannot  get  rid  of 
them,  but  never  can  Christianity  be  tolerated  in 
Moslems.  Liberty  of  conscience  in  this  sense  is  treason 
to  heaven.  Thus  Turkey  reasons  in  accord  with  tradi- 
tional views  and  customs  which  have  held  sway  for 
centuries. 

In  many  other  respects  mission  work  has  been  an  of- 
fense to  the  Turk.  The  translation  of  the  Bible  into  so 
many  languages  of  his  empire — the  united  work  of  the 
Bible  societies  and  missionaries, — the  industrious  and 
successful  distribution  of  the  Scriptures,  is  a  feature  of 
missionary  enterprise  which  has  so  annoyed  him  that 
he  has  often  seized  innocent  colporteurs  and  put  them 
in  prison  as  common  criminals,  where  they  might  stay 
for  months.  He  has  done  this  even  though  he  has 
officially  sanctioned  the  issue  of  every  book  the 
colporteur  is  selling.  The  busy  activities  of  mission 
presses,  and  the  literary  renaissance  of  recent  years, 
have  made  him  impatient,  and  his  censorship  of  the 
press  at  times  has  been  both  tormenting  and  amusing 
in  its  furious  stringency.  A  solemn  order  was  at  one 
time  promulgated  that  henceforth  no  mission  press 
should  have  more  than  one  entrance,  and  that  by  the 
front  door,  in  full  view  of  the  police.  Back  doors  to 
presses  were  too  suspicious  to  be  allowed.  Orders 
were  formerly  given  that  every  book  henceforth  to  be 


258  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

printed  must  be  sent  in  manuscript  entire  to  the  author- 
ities for  approval.  All  existing  publications  must  also 
be  submitted.  Strange  to  say,  however,  the  official 
indorsement  of  the  Imperial  Ministry  of  Public  In- 
struction has  been  obtained  upon  the  Bible  in  every 
language  of  the  empire. 

A  few  years  ago,  in  the  reign  of  Abd-ul-Hamid,  the 
government  had  a  severe  spasm  of  restrictive  oversight 
of  all  foreign  books  and  periodicals.  Everything  bear- 
ing upon  missions,  Islam,  Turkey,  Oriental  travel, 
Eastern  history,  and  the  religious  and  political  condi- 
tion of  the  East,  was  at  once  confiscated.  Encyclopaedias 
were  in  special  disfavour  ;  they  know  too  much  and  say 
too  much  on  a  great  variety  of  subjects.  The  letter  M 
was  regarded  as  an  exceptionally  dangerous  one,  and,  if 
the  book  was  not  finally  retained,  it  was  returned  with 
a  portion  or  all  matter  under  the  letter  M  cut  out. 
What  propriety  in  having  Mohammed  talked  about  in 
the  same  breath  with  Mephistopheles  and  monk  and 
mule,  or  Mohammedanism  with  mythology  and  mis- 
sions and  malaria,  or  Moslem  with  Mormon  and  mummy 
and  missionary.  At  a  former  holocaust  at  a  prominent 
seaport  of  the  empire,  600  foreign  books  under  con- 
demnation were  burned  by  the  authorities.  It  is  said 
that  an  old  Moslem  law  was  promulgated  with  refer- 
ence to  the  famous  "  Apology  of  Al-Kindy  " — a  book  in 
defense  of  Christianity — that  any  house  in  which  it  was 
found  should  be  destroyed,  and  forty  houses  around  it. 
It  looked  at  times  as  if  a  revised  modern  form  of  this  law 
was  about  to  be  promulgated,  reading  somewhat  as  fol- 
lows :  "  All  mission  presses  are  to  be  destroyed,  and 
every  contaminated  house  that  is  near  them." 

Educational  work  has  been  also  a  serious  grievance 


The  American  Missionary  in  the  Near  East    259 

to  the  Turk.  He  has  at  times  closed  many  of  the 
schools — at  one  time  over  thirty  were  closed  in  Syria 
and  Palestine,  and  policemen  forcibly  removed  all 
Moslem  children,  and  stringent  prohibitory  orders  were 
issued  forbidding  Moslems  to  send  their  children.  A 
law  was  once  framed  forbidding  all  religious  instruc- 
tion in  mission  schools,  but  was  never  promulgated.  It 
has  been  at  times  almost  impossible  to  get  a  permit  to 
purchase  or  build  for  school  or  church  purposes.  In 
some  places  all  right  of  public  assembly  for  religious 
worship  was  denied.  School-teachers  were  arrested  as 
disturbers  of  the  peace ;  churches  were  closed,  and  a 
government  seal  put  on  the  door.  Under  the  old 
regime  the  authorities  were  very  jealous  of  the  foreign 
press,  and  European  or  American  periodicals  and 
journals  were  watched  to  see  if  anything  of  an  un- 
friendly or  critical  tenor  against  Islam  or  Turkey  ap- 
peared. If  so,  the  magazine  was  not  allowed  to  enter 
the  empire. 

The  new  regime,  though  in  its  civic  aspects  its  success  is 
still  open  to  question,  and  though  its  policy  in  dealing 
with  subject  races  is  as  yet  not  reassuring,  has  at  least 
called  a  halt  to  all  this  futile  and  foolish  espionage,  and 
this  ambushed  sharp-shooting  at  every  sign  of  progress. 
Reactionary  forces,  however,  are  still  in  evidence,  and 
no  one  knows  their  latent  possibilities.  How  the  goal 
of  full  religious  liberty  and  racial  justice  will  be  attained 
no  one  can  foresee.  Apparently  the  Moslem  supremacy 
will  stand  or  fall  at  this  point  of  concession.  If  it  is 
gained,  and  Moslems  are  free  to  become  Christians,  if 
they  so  desire,  there  will  be  a  New  Turkey  indeed,  and 
the  last  stronghold  of  age-long  despotism  will  be  des- 
troyed.    In  the  meantime,  a  conflict  between   Chris- 


260  The  Modem  Call  of  Missions 

tianity  and  Islam  is  coming  on  apace  ;  the  intolerable 
conditions  of  Turkish  rule  mixed  perhaps  with  political 
aspirations  may  make  it  a  conflict  of  arms,  but  it  will 
be  essentially  a  struggle  for  moral  supremacy.  Chris- 
tianity claims  the  right,  in  the  name  of  its  Divine 
Master,  to  win  its  way  in  the  world  wherever  possible 
by  the  use  of  weapons  which  He  Himself  has  put  in  its 
hands — persuasion,  entreaty,  argument,  the  demonstra- 
tion of  its  great  foundation  truths,  the  appeal  of  divine 
love  in  sacrifice,  the  touch  of  human  sympathy,  the 
word  of  cheer,  the  deed  of  kindness,  the  helpful  ministry, 
the  gentle  reproof,  and  the  solemn  warning.  In  this 
great  ministry  of  instruction  and  reformation  Christi- 
anity has  the  indorsement,  in  fact,  it  is  the  embodiment 
of  the  highest  authority  in  the  universe.  It  cannot  be 
conceded  that  any  earthly  authority  has  the  moral  right, 
although  it  may  for  a  time  have  the  power,  to  forbid  its 
entrance,  or  banish  its  agencies,  if  it  is  true  to  its  message, 
and  limits  itself  to  the  simple  methods  and  the  spiritual 
weapons  it  is  entitled  to  use. 

The  world  is  slow  to  recognize  the  fact  that  the  con- 
sciences of  all  men  are  free.  No  authority  has  been 
given  to  any  human  power  of  Church  or  State  to  rule 
the  moral  nature.  God  has  created  it  free.  Its 
freedom  is  essential  to  its  moral  accountability.  "When, 
therefore,  a  civil  power  undertakes  to  prohibit  by  force 
all  contact  of  Christian  truth  with  the  consciences  of  its 
subjects,  it  is  assuming  an  attitude  which  is  an  offense 
to  the  highest  moral  rights  of  the  race,  and  usurping  a 
function  which  does  not  rightly  belong  to  human 
governments.  We  do  not  deny  that  much  wrong  has 
been  done  in  this  direction  in  the  name  of  a  false  Chris- 
tianity, but  never  with  the  sanction  of  the  Christianity 


The  American  Missionary  in  the  Near  East    261 

which  the  Bible  teaches,  and  the  Divine  Master  inspires 
and  leads.  Let  the  Christianity  of  this  new  century, 
and  especially  of  enlightened  America,  which  we  believe 
to  be  ripening  into  something  nobler,  more  chivalrous, 
and  more  beneficent  than  wre  have  known  in  the  past, 
declare  for  a  world-wide  liberty  of  the  conscience,  and 
seek  by  all  gentle  and  proper  means  to  free  the  down- 
trodden nations  from  spiritual  slavery,  and  bring  man- 
kind into  that  noble  and  genial  atmosphere  where  the 
soul  can  have  untrammelled  intercourse  with  its  Creator, 
and  freely  seek  its  own  highest  welfare  as  God  gives  it 
light. 


XIII 

The  Strategic  Import  of  Missions  in  the 
Levant 


In  what  direction,  under  this  pressure  of  education,  is  the  Muslim 
world  drifting,  and  toward  what  end  ?  Unless  all  signs  deceive,  there 
lies  before  the  Muslim^'peoples  a  terrible  religious  collapse.  Islam  as  a 
religion  is  not  holding  its  own  against  the  unbelief  that  is  flooding  it  from 
the  European  civilization.  Young  men  are  growing  up  into  crass  and 
material  forms  of  atheism,  forms  that  the  best  intellectual  life  of  Europe 
has  itself  thrown  off.  And  as  education  spreads  and  deepens,  as  history 
vindicates  for  itself  its  place,  as  the  moral  feeling  becomes  more  watchful 
and  sensitive,  so  the  legend  of  Muhammad  will  crumble,  and  his  character 
be  seen  in  its  true  light.  And  with  Muhammad  the  entire  fabric  must  go. 
It  is  then  for  the  Christian  schools  and  preachers  to  save  these  peoples, 
not  only  for  Christianity,  but  for  any  religion  at  all ;  to  vindicate  to  them 
the  claims  upon  their  lives  of  religion  in  the  broadest  sense. 

Duncan  Black  Macdonald,  M.  A.,  D.  D. 

The  solvent  that  removes  the  prejudices  of  Moslems  is  love  expressed  in 
beneficent  deeds  and  in  unselfish  character.  Probably  the  greatest  work 
that  Christian  missions  have  done  in  Mohammedan  lands  is  to  present  in 
life  and  deed  the  fruits  of  Christianity.  Hospitals,  schools,  relief  of  poverty, 
and  integrity  and  honour  in  daily  life  have  presented  a  new  idea  of  service, 
religion  and  manhood.  This  ideal  differs  from  that  of  the  saints  of  Islam. 
The  position  of  woman  in  the  Christian  home  and  society  has  an  attraction, 
especially  for  women.  Many  of  them  realize  something  of  the  evils  caused 
by  polygamy  and  divorce,  and,  in  general,  the  relation  of  the  sexes  is  so 
different  in  the  two  religions  that  the  contrast  cannot  but  be  striking. 
More  important  than  institutional  Christianity  is  the  influence  of  personal 
character  in  the  social  relations  of  life. 

The  Rev.  W.  A.  Shedd,  D.  D. 


XIII 

THE  STRATEGIC  IMPORT  OF  MISSIONS  IN 
THE  LEVANT 1 

IF  there  is  any  department  of  divine  activity  in 
which  we  may  expect  to  discover  a  controlling 
purpose,  it  is  in  missions.  The  very  idea  of 
missions  implies  far-reaching  plans  in  the  mind  of  God. 
The  word,  popular  and  commonplace  though  it  may 
seem,  stands  for  all  that  the  promises  and  prophecies 
and  high  behests  of  God  mean  to  the  world.  Is  it 
possible  to  discover  the  aim  of  Providence  in  Levantine 
missions  ?  If  we  are  not  mistaken,  there  is  a  large 
ulterior  design  in  view,  with  a  wealth  of  meaning  and 
an  affluence  of  results  which,  without  irreverence,  may 
be  regarded  in  the  light  of  a  dominating  purpose,  the 
full  significance  of  which  God  will  unfold  in  its  proper 
time. 

The  Levant  is  old  strategic  ground  in  the  religious 
history  of  the  world.  It  was  the  rallying-point  of  those 
sublime  supernatural  forces  which  culminated  in  the 
Incarnation  and  the  founding  of  the  Christian  Church. 
It  was  the  arena  of  the  early  conflicts  of  Christian  his- 
tory, the  birthplace  of  apostolic  missions.  It  is  still  a 
strategic  region,  and  we  shall  venture  to  name  some 
aspects  of  the  outlook  which  we  consider  as  suggestive 
of  mighty  and  far-reaching  providential  plans. 

(1)     Missions  in  the  Levant  contemplate  a  Christian 

1  Tfie  Missionary  Herald,  June,  1894. 
265 


266  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

reformation  in  Western  Asia.  There  is  a  large  nominal 
Christian  population  scattered  throughout  the  Levant, 
having  strong  affinities  on  the  north  with  the  Russian 
branch  of  the  Eastern  Church,  and  on  the  south  com- 
ing into  touch  with  the  Abyssinian  remnant  of  early 
Christianity.  The  Eastern  or  Greek  Church,  which 
extends  in  scattered  communities  throughout  the  Levant, 
with  its  contiguous  and  affiliated  branches  in  the  Balkan 
Peninsula  and  in  Russia,  the  Armenian,  the  Nestorian, 
the  Maronite,  the  Syriac,  and  the  Coptic,  with  Papal  off- 
shoots scattered  in  many  localities,  present  a  vast  Chris- 
tian constituency,  which  needs  an  evangelical  reformation 
quite  as  much  as  was  the  case  with  European  Christian- 
ity in  the  sixteenth  century.  "We  may  safely  estimate 
Levantine  Christianity  and  its  outlying  affiliated  broth- 
erhood of  the  Eastern  Church  as  representing  100,000,000 
souls.  This  would  be  about  equal  to  the  entire  Chris- 
tian population  of  Europe  in  the  sixteenth  century. 

Here  is  a  magnificent  arena  for  evangelical  reforma- 
tion. The  old  battle  is  to  be  fought  over  again.  Souls 
are  to  be  rescued  from  superstition,  and  from  the  blight- 
ing influence  of  an  unworthy  sacerdotalism.  Christian- 
ity, handicapped  by  its  corruptions,  has  had  a  hard 
fight  for  life.  It  was  enfeebled  after  its  early  conquest 
of  the  Roman  Empire  by  the  growing  degeneracy  con- 
nected with  the  rise  of  the  Papacy.  The  Moslem 
domination,  with  its  staggering  blows,  attacked  it  in 
its  enervation,  and  has  held  it  in  subjection  for  cen- 
turies. Christianity  in  its  defensive  struggles  has  taken 
refuge  in  worldly  devices  and  political  alliances.  It  has 
given  scant  attention  to  its  higher  resources  of  spiritual 
dependence  upon  God,  and  has  compromised  too  read- 
ily with  the  world,  and  leaned  too  heavily  upon  empty 


Strategic  Import  of  Missions  in  the  Levant    267 

formalism  and  its  hierarchical  system.  The  result  of 
all  this  is  that  Eastern  Christianity  is  in  fast  alliance 
with  worldliness,  and  only  a  great  spiritual  upheaval 
can  work  its  deliverance.  The  reform  must  work  from 
within  outward  in  order  to  be  efficient.  Christianity 
in  the  East  must  be  born  again  if  it  is  to  know  the 
power  of  a  revived  spiritual  life.  A  recovery  so  radical 
and  vital  as  this  requires  long  and  patient  preparation. 
There  were  a  hundred  years  of  providential  anticipa- 
tion of  the  Reformation  in  Europe.  We  believe  the 
Reformation  in  Western  Asia  requires  possibly  even  a 
longer  period  for  its  full  development,  but  the  day  of 
divine  visitation  will  come,  and  we  shall  have  a  re- 
formed East.  Christianity  will  be  baptized  again  with 
spiritual  life  amid  the  scenes  of  its  early  triumphs. 

(2)  Another  ulterior  aim  of  missions  in  the  Levant 
is  to  purify  Christianity,  and  redeem  it  from  its  un- 
worthiness  in  the  eyes  of  the  Mohammedan  world. 
Christianity  in  the  East  has  been  under  a  cloud  during 
all  the  centuries  of  Mohammedan  history.  The  Moslem 
has  always  beheld  it  under  false  colours.  He  has  formed 
his  opinion  of  it  upon  utterly  misleading  evidence. 
Lapsed  Christianity  has  posed  in  place  of  the  true. 
The  influence  upon  the  Moslem  has  been  to  the  serious 
discredit  of  Christianity.  What  judgment  could  he 
pass  upon  Mariolatry  and  sacerdotalism,  and  the  idola- 
trous reverence  rendered  to  pictures  and  images? 
How  could  we  expect  him  to  regard  the  all-pervading 
ceremonialism,  the  unreality  of  the  mass,  the  device  of 
the  Greek  Fire  in  the  Church  of  the  Holy  Sepulchre, 
the  doctrine  of  purgatory,  and  the  assumptions  of 
priestly  absolution  ?  There  is  enough  which  it  is  diffi- 
cult for  a  Moslem  to  receive  in  the  evangelical  doctrine 


268  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

of  the  Trinity,  the  Incarnation,  and  the  Atonement. 
He,  like  all  of  us,  must  be  taught  of  God,  and  be  en- 
lightened by  the  Spirit,  even  to  receive  the  Scriptural 
truth  which  is  involved  in  the  Christian  system.  To 
expect  him  to  receive  with  respect  the  inventions  of 
Oriental  Christianity,  especially  the  errors  of  papal 
doctrine,  and  to  declare  his  allegiance  to  a  system  at 
once  so  misleading  and  puerile,  is  not  only  antecedently 
improbable,  but  has  been  shown  to  be  historically  im- 
possible. If  Christianity  is  ever  to  touch  the  Moslem 
heart,  it  must  be  full  of  evangelical  power  and  beauty, 
linked  with  Christ  in  supreme  recognition  and  alle- 
giance, and  freed  from  the  corruptions  with  which  it 
has  been  overlaid  in  the  East.  Islam  will  never  be  con- 
verted by  Oriental  Christianity,  and  there  is  a  strategic 
preparation  vitally  important  and  absolutely  necessary 
in  a  reformed  Christianity  which  can  be  presented  as 
the  true  religion  of  Christ  as  He  gave  it  to  men. 

(3)  Missions  in  the  Levant  are  strategic  in  their 
relation  to  the  ultimate  conversion  of  the  Moslem  world. 
The  Turkish  Empire,  although  it  is  not  cordially  and 
loyally  recognized  as  such  by  all  Mohammedans,  is 
nevertheless,  in  effect,  the  religious,  political,  and 
military  centre  of  Islam.  The  Khalif  at  Constanti- 
nople, whatever  suspicion  may  rest  upon  his  claim,  is 
still  the  only  accredited  successor  of  the  Prophet. 
There  are  at  times  signs  of  intellectual  and  political 
unrest  among  the  wider  constituency  of  Islam,  yet  so 
far  as  the  insignia  of  supreme  headship  is  concerned,  it 
is  in  the  possession  at  the  present  hour  of  the  Ottoman 
Sultan.  If  Mohammedanism  were  called  to  rally  to  a 
religious  jihad,  or  holy  war,  it  would  be  around  the 
throne    of    the    Ottomans.     Levantine    missions    are 


Strategic  Import  of  Missions  in  the  Levant    269 

strategically  near  this  heart  of  the  Mohammedan 
system.  With  Oriental  Christianity  as  a  basis  of  work, 
the  Gospel  is  being  planted  in  its  purity  throughout 
the  length  and  breadth  of  the  Levant.  As  in  the  days 
of  the  Roman  Empire,  when  Christianity  was  working 
toward  the  overthrow  of  pagan  Rome,  so  in  our  day  it 
is  scattering  itself  far  and  wide,  through  city  and  vil- 
lage and  hamlet  of  the  Levant,  and  is  impinging  at  a 
thousand  points  upon  Levantine  society.  Side  by  side 
with  political  disintegration  has  grown  up  the  intel- 
lectual and  spiritual  transformation  of  modern  mis- 
sions. 

It  would  be  presumptuous  in  this  connection  to 
speak  with  any  assurance,  but  when  we  consider  the 
progress  already  made  by  the  leavening  power  of  mis- 
sions in  the  Orient,  the  existence  of  the  Word  of  God, 
either  entire  or  in  part,  in  twelve  principal  languages 
of  the  Levant,  and  thirty  dialects  of  the  same,1  the  wide 
dissemination  of  Christian  literature,  and  the  pervasive 
power  of  Christian  education,  we  must  recognize  that 
divine  forces  are  marshalling  themselves  with  a  myste- 
rious celerity  and  a  strategic  combination  all  throughout 
Western  Asia.  When  we  note  also  the  political  changes 
of  the  last  fifty  years,  the  present  unsettled  condition 
of  the  Turkish  Empire,  the  unrelaxed  grasp  of  England 
upon  Egypt,  and  all  the  burning  questions  of  Levan- 
tine diplomacy  which  the   Christian   governments    of 

1  Historical  Catalogue  of  the  Printed  Editions  of  Holy  Scriptures  in 
the  Library  of  the  British  and  Foreign  Bible  Society.  Compiled  by 
J.  H.  Darlow,  M.  A.,  and  H.  F.  Moule,  M.  A.  London,  Bible  House, 
146  Queen  Victoria  St.  Vol.  I,  1903.  Vol.  II,  1911.  The  twelve 
prinoipal  languages  referred  to  in  the  above  statement  are  as  follows  : 
Albanian,  Arabic,  Armenian,  Bulgarian,  Coptic,  Greek,  Kurdish, 
Persian,  Rumanian,  Serbo-Crotian,  Syriac,  Turkish. 


270  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

Europe  have  felt  it  necessary  to  keep  in  abeyance, 
until  at  last  they  have  flamed  up  in  the  Balkan  "War, 
we  must  realize  that  God's  providential  plans  are  ripen- 
ing fast.  Then,  too,  a  new  approach  to  Islam  has  been 
opened  through  Arabia.  There  is  now  religious  liberty 
in  Egypt,  with  a  wonderful  spirit  of  inquiry,  and  a  large 
demand  for  religious  literature.  In  Persia  the  Spirit 
of  God  seems  to  be  directly  at  work  upon  multitudes 
of  Moslem  hearts.  There  is  a  design  deeper  than  the 
wisdom  of  man,  as  deep  as  the  counsels  of  God,  in  all 
this.  Let  us  bide  God's  time,  and  go  patiently  forward 
in  the  conscientious  discharge  of  our  duty  during  these 
preparatory  stages.  When  the  strategy  is  fully  un- 
folded, we  shall  rejoice  that  we  had  the  faith  and  the 
consecration  to  do  our  part  during  the  quiet  years 
when  God  was  working  in  the  light  of  His  own  secret 
purposes. 

(4)  There  is  a  prospective  import  also  in  missions  as 
related  to  the  languages  of  the  Levant.  Where  there 
are  so  many  nationalities  there  is  a  corresponding 
variety  of  language.  Missionaries  have  mastered  and 
appropriated  these  many  vehicles  of  thought,  and  have 
made  them  messengers  of  divine  instruction  to  many 
peoples.  The  miracle  of  the  Day  of  Pentecost  was 
simply  typical  of  missionary  activities  in  the  nineteenth 
and  twentieth  centuries,  throughout  the  almost  identi- 
cal region  whence  came  those  many-tongued  speakers 
of  "  the  wonderful  works  of  God."  Evangelistic  preach- 
ing and  mission  literature  are  disseminating  to-day  in 
many  tongues  throughout  the  Levant  the  same  teachings 
of  revelation  which  the  apostles  gave  to  the  world. 
Listen,  for  example,  to  the  languages  in  which  the 
Bible  speaks  to-day  in  the  Nearer  Orient.     Almost  all 


Strategic  Import  of  Missions  in  the  Levant    271 

these  translations  are  the  work  of  modern  missionaries. 
There  is  the  noble  Arabic,  the  Albanian,  the  Armenian, 
the  Osmanli-Turkish,  the  Persian,  the  Syriac,  the  Kurd- 
ish, the  Bulgarian,  the  Modern  Greek,  the  Rumanian, 
the  Serbo-Crotian,  and  the  Coptic,  twelve  distinct 
languages. 

In  addition  to  these  primary  languages,  there  are 
many  dialects,  and  also  a  number  of  editions  of  the 
Bible  in  which  these  same  translations  are  printed  in 
different  characters,  so  that  they  may  be  read  by 
various  classes  of  that  polyglot  empire.  The  Turkish 
Bible  is  printed  in  the  Arabic,  the  Armenian,  and  the 
Greek  characters.  The  Persian,  which  is  printed  ordi- 
narily in  Arabic,  is  also  printed  in  the  Hebrew  char- 
acters. The  Arabic  is  issued  in  Hebrew  and  Syriac 
type.  The  Syriac  is  printed  in  the  Nestorian  or 
Chaldaic  characters,  the  Kurdish  in  the  Armenian,  the 
Coptic  in  the  Arabic,  the  Albanian,  which  has  both  a 
northern  and  southern  dialect,  in  Roman  and  Greek 
characters,  and  the  Greek  is  sometimes  printed  in  Ro- 
man characters.  There  are  also  raised  editions  for  the 
blind,  in  Armenian,  Jewish,  and  Arabic.  If  we  count 
languages,  dialects,  transliterations,  and  special  editions 
for  the  blind,  there  are  not  less  than  forty-five  printed 
forms  of  the  sacred  Scriptures  for  use  in  the  Levant 
and  its  immediate  environment  of  Western  Asia,  each 
one  of  which  is  intended  to  reach  a  distinct  class  of  the 
population.  What  is  done  for  the  Bible  is  also  done  to 
a  large  extent  in  the  dissemination  of  religious  and 
educational  literature,  and  in  the  circulation  of  news- 
papers and  journals.  Missions  are  thus  laying  siege 
through  every  avenue  of  approach  to  the  intellectual 
and  religious  thought  of  the  East. 


272  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

The  strategic  import  of  all  this  will  appear  when  we 
reflect  that  these  languages  which  we  have  named  repre- 
sent the  vernacular  of  an  estimated  population  of  not 
less  than  80,000,000.  If  we  take  the  Arabic  alone,  it 
may  be  considered  by  a  very  conservative  estimate  the 
medium  for  reaching  at  least  40,000,000  souls.  It  is 
the  spoken  tongue  of  Northern  Africa,  the  Eastern 
Sudan,  Arabia,  Palestine,  Syria,  and  Mesopotamia. 
It  is  the  sacred  language,  although  not  necessarily  the 
vernacular,  of  Mohammedans  everywhere  throughout 
the  world.  Consider  now  what  Christian  missions  have 
put  into  this  one  language  within  a  half -century.  There 
is  the  Bible  in  thirty  editions.  There  are  seven  hun- 
dred distinct  volumes  of  religious,  educational,  scien- 
tific, historical,  and  popular  literature  issued  from  the 
Beirut  Press  of  the  American  Presbyterian  Mission. 
An  average  of  25,000,000  pages  was  printed  at  that 
press  annually,  in  earlier  years,  which  for  the  last  few 
years  has  increased  to  40,000,000,  and  the  total  of 
pages  printed  since  its  establishment  is  slightly  over 
1,000,000,000,  while  more  than  1,450,000  volumes  of 
Scriptures  and  portions  have  been  sold  since  1872. 
The  Beirut  Mission  Press  has  become  a  distributing 
centre  for  Arabic  literature  throughout  the  world.  As 
we  contemplate  this  marvellous  achievement,  can  we 
not  read  the  signs  of  a  strategic  purpose  in  the  divine 
mind  to  subsidize  through  Levantine  missions  a  magnif- 
icent language  for  missionary  purposes  ? 

(5)  Still  another  outlook  of  divine  purpose  in 
Levantine  missions  may  be  discovered  in  the  fact  that 
they  are  a  training-ground  for  future  missionary  serv- 
ice by  native  workers.  Native  missionaries  from  the 
Levant,   according    to    the    varied    affinity   of    their 


Strategic  Import  of  Missions  in  the  Levant    273 

vernacular,  can  be  sent  northward,  eastward,  south- 
ward, and  westward  along  the  northern  shores  of 
Africa.  Already  Persian  evangelists  have  crossed  the 
boundary,  and  have  penetrated  the  mountains  of  Kur- 
distan, and  Arabic-speaking  Syrians  have  gone  to  the 
Mesopotaniian  Valley,  to  Arabia,  Egypt,  the  Sudan, 
and  along  the  northern  shores  of  Africa.  The  high 
schools  and  colleges  of  the  Levant  are  giving  educa- 
tional facilities  to  young  men  and  young  women,  who,  if 
responsive  to  the  call  of  God,  can  do  useful  missionary 
work  for  Him  in  distant  regions.  We  are  as  yet  only 
beginning  to  see  the  import  of  this  feature  of  Levantine 
missions.  There  are  Arabic-speaking  evangelists  who 
were  educated  in  mission  schools  in  Syria,  who  are  at 
present  engaged  in  mission  work  in  Mesopotamia, 
Palestine,  Southern  Arabia,  Egypt,  Algeria,  and  Mo- 
rocco. Not  long  ago  there  came  a  call  from  China  for 
an  educated  Arabic-speaking  evangelist,  familiar  with 
Mohammedan  literature,  to  enter  upon  the  work  among 
Chinese  Mohammedans.  When  God's  plans  are  ripe  He 
can  scatter  Levantine  missionaries  from  China  on  the 
east  to  Morocco  on  the  west,  and  from  the  Caucasus 
to  the  southern  coasts  of  Arabia. 

(6)  We  believe  that  there  is  still  a  further  strategic 
meaning  to  Levantine  missions,  in  the  fact  that  the  peo- 
ple of  the  East  are  being  trained  and  elevated  for  future 
responsibilities.  No  one  can  foresee  what  Providence 
may  have  in  store  eventually  for  the  various  nationali- 
ties of  the  Levant.  The  mighty  wave  of  political  and 
military  readjustment  which  has  been  sweeping  over 
the  Nearer  East  seems  to  be  mountain  high  with 
potential  import.  In  any  case,  however,  the  Turkish 
Government,  wherever  it  may  retain  its  sway,  will  find 


274  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

that  its  citizenship  represents  a  better  and  more  intelli- 
gent type  of  manhood  and  womanhood  because  of  the 
educational  service  rendered  by  Christian  missions 
throughout  the  empire.  Higher  phases  of  civilization 
will  be  introduced,  and  a  higher  moral  tone  given  to 
society.  God's  own  plans  will  be  wrought  out  in  His 
own  way  and  time,  and  the  civil  and  social  benefits  of 
evangelical  missions  in  the  East  will  be  no  insignificant 
feature  of  the  deep  and  gracious  thoughts  of  God  for 
the  regeneration  of  the  Orient. 


XIV 

Is  Islam  the  Gospel  for  the  Orient  ? 


Features  of  Christianity  which  often  undeniably  attract  Moslems  can  be 
only  briefly  noticed.  The  ethical  freedom  of  the  religion  of  Christ  has 
been  already  mentioned,  with  the  consequent  absence  of  casuistical  rules 
for  the  individual,  and  cramping  regulations  for  the  social  and  political 
life.  But  not  many  Moslems  have  had  this  revealed  to  them  yet.  The 
freedom,  purposefulness,  intimacy,  and  simplicity  of  Christian  prayer  is 
another  such  feature.  .  .  .  The  ideal  and  the  practice  of  Christian 
love,  forgiveness,  truthfulness,  and  chastity,  have  time  and  again  extorted 
the  admiration  of  Mohammedans  when  they  have  witnessed  them.  .  .  . 
The  life  of  the  Christian  family,  when  they  see  it ;  Christian  womanhood, 
calm,  capable,  womanly,  gracious,  self-controlled — this,  too,  fills  them  with 
wonder.     They  know  Islam  has  never  produced  such  women.     .     .     . 

The  incessant  sounding  of  the  sexual  note  in  the  Koran,  the  Traditions, 
the  canon  law,  and  in  the  poetry,  literature,  theology,  and  entire  system  of 
Islam,  tends  to  make  impossible  the  highest  individual,  family,  or  social 
life,  and  defeats  the  very  ends  it  appears  to  have  had  in  view.  .  .  . 
The  relation  of  man  to  woman  and  of  woman  to  man,  which  was  made 
possible  by  Jesus  Christ,  is  in  truth  the  sanest,  as  well  as  the  purest,  the 
strongest  and  the  richest,  and  the  most  perfectly  human. 

The  Rev.  W.  H.  T.  Gairdner. 


XIY 
IS  ISLAM  THE  GOSPEL  FOR  THE  ORIENT?' 

THAT  command  which  Mohammed  seemed  to 
himself  to  hear  in  the  depths  of  his  serious 
and  brooding  soul,  "  Cry,  cry,  in  the  name  of 
Allah  !  "  and  which  he  interpreted  as  the  voice  of  the 
angel  Gabriel,  introduces  us  to  a  veritable  dreamland  of 
history.  It  is  not,  however,  a  land  of  dreams ;  rather 
of  realities  which  have  thrilled  and  torn  the  world,  and 
strained  the  religious,  social,  and  political  systems  of 
men  as  with  the  throes  of  revolution.  The  good  sword 
of  Christendom  never  struck  more  telling  blows  than  at 
Tours  and  Vienna,  when  it  dashed  to  the  earth  the 
Damascus  blades  of  the  Saracen  and  Turkish  invaders 
sweeping  into  Northern  and  Central  Europe.  "Who 
can  picture  the  course  of  history  had  the  result  been 
different  ?  Who  can  estimate  the  world's  indebtedness 
to  Charles  Martel  and  Sobieski,  and  to  the  brave  men 
who  fought  with  them  for  the  rescue  of  Europe  from 
the  Koran,  the  crescent,  and  the  harem — symbols  of  a 
religious,  political,  and  social  creed  which  has  held  back 
the  progress  of  civilization  for  over  twelve  hundred 
years. 

Who  can  write  this  story  of  Islam  as  it  throbs  and 
flames  in  Eastern  history?  Who  can  solve  this  mystery 
of  God  and  Mohammed  ?  Who  can  explain  the  genesis 
and  the  historic  mission  of  this  cry  of  the  desert,  which 

1  The  Century  Magazine,  April,  1892. 
277 


278  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

has  closed  ancient  schools  of  philosophy,  and  held  as  in 
chains  the  sensuous  tastes  and  the  wildly  idolatrous 
trend  of  the  fervid  East  by  the  simple  creed,  the 
fatalistic  courage,  and  the  stern  practice  of  a  severe 
religious  discipline  ?  The  history  of  Islam  as  a  religion, 
and  the  story  of  its  mysterious  sway,  are  fascinating 
themes  to  a  student  of  the  science  of  comparative  relig- 
ion, and  we  wait  for  some  master  in  religious  histor}^ 
and  lore,  whose  spirit  shall  be  taught  of  God,  and  who 
shall  bring  to  the  task  of  writing  the  story  of  Islam, 
wise  scholarship,  as  well  as  genius  and  patience  in 
Oriental  research.  He  must  be  able  to  read  history  be- 
tween the  lines  of  romance,  separate  sober  fact  from 
garrulous  tradition,  trace  back  the  streams  of  Islamic 
thought  to  their  hidden  fountains  in  the  desert,  and 
push  aside  the  tangled  overgrowth  from  sources,  long 
since  dry,  which  once  gave  forth  their  brackish  waters 
to  those  who  perchance  were  searching  the  barren 
wilderness  for  the  purer  and  sweeter  springs  of  life. 

The  thought  of  our  time  seems  ripening  for  such  a 
true  and  exact  estimate  of  Islam.  A  kindly  and 
generous  but  firm  and  inflexible  judgment  upon  this 
historic  problem  is  rapidly  forming.  Islam  shall  have 
all  the  credit  it  deserves  ;  it  shall  be  treated  with  fair- 
ness and  calmness  and  courtesy  ;  but  never  can  it  have 
the  place  of  supremacy  it  claims ;  it  can  never  even 
share  the  honours  of  Christianity  ;  nor  can  it  presume 
to  be  her  handmaid  in  the  regeneration  of  the  East.  It 
has  done  its  work,  and  left  its  stamp  upon  the  Orient. 
Its  record  is  of  the  earth,  earthy,  although  it  has  cried 
and  fought  in  the  name  of  Allah.  Its  fountainhead  is 
in  the  depths  of  the  Arabian  wilderness  ;  it  has  flowed 
only  in  human  channels  ;  it  has  hardly  risen  above  the 


Is  Islam  the  Gospel  for  the  Orient?        279 

ordinary  level  of  religious  standards  in  the  Orient ;  its 
ethical  and  social  code  is  the  rude  heritage  of  the  desert, 
too  crude  and  wild  to  adjust  itself  to  the  higher  phases 
of  modern  civilization.  Its  doctrine  of  one  God,  while 
it  is  the  secret  of  its  power,  and  explains  to  a  large  ex- 
tent its  magic  sway,  has  not  saved  it.  It  has  given 
dignity  and  nobility  to  the  Moslem  creed ;  but  a  closer 
scrutiny  reveals  the  broken,  distorted,  and  inferior  rep- 
resentation of  the  ineffable  character  of  God  which  we 
have  in  Islam.  It  is  God  environed  with  human  inter- 
pretations, modifications,  and  readjustments,  to  meet 
the  religious  and  social  requirements  of  the  East,  as 
understood  by  a  representative  Oriental.  The  Deity 
is  made  to  sanction  what  He  loathes,  and  to  command 
a  whole  system  of  human  formalism.  The  difference 
between  the  Bible  and  the  Koran  is  the  difference  be- 
tween the  divine  and  the  human. 

What  shall  we  say,  then,  of  the  mission  of  Islam  ? 
What  is  its  significance  as  a  factor  in  the  religious  his- 
tory of  the  world  ?  Why  was  it  so  quickly  recognized, 
and  so  readily  admitted  to  the  place  of  power  it  has 
held  in  human  affairs  ?  What  has  it  done  for  mankind  ? 
It  has  at  least  saved  the  Orient  from  atheism,  and  has 
taught  men  to  bow  in  prayer,  and  has  nourished  gen- 
erations in  the  exercise  of  faith.  It  has  staggered 
idolatry  by  a  crushing  blow  throughout  all  of  Western 
Asia  and  Northern  Africa.  It  has  been,  moreover,  a 
disciplinary  dispensation  to  the  priestly  pretensions  and 
the  idolatrous  practices  of  lapsed  Christianity.  The 
Eastern  world  in  the  earlier  centuries  of  the  Christian 
Era  seemed  to  have  rushed  headlong  into  the  vortex  of 
idolatry,  and  had  lured  Christianity  to  her  fatal  lapse. 
Centuries  must  pass  in  the  ordinary  course  of  history 


280  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

before  the  dawn  of  a  spiritual  reformation  could  be  ex- 
pected in  the  East.  Shall  idolatry,  pagan  and  Chris- 
tian, be  left,  meanwhile,  to  riot  in  the  ancient  seats 
of  Jewish  monotheism  ?  Shall  the  lands  which  have 
known  "  one  God  "  know  Him  no  more  forever  ?  A 
fervid  cry  is  wafted  from  the  depths  of  the  Arabian 
wilderness  :  "  There  is  no  god  but  God  " — alas  !  that 
there  were  added  the  fatal  words — "  and  Mohammed 
is  the  prophet  of  God."  Yet  Islam  is  immeasurably 
better  than  idolatry,  and  has  truly  a  weighty  message 
and  a  high  mission.  The  world  shall  learn  what  superb 
energy  and  resistless  power  lie  wrapped  in  the  potent 
principle  of  faith  in  God,  even  though  a  human  teacher 
be  its  only  leader,  and  its  path  is  in  the  fatalistic  mirage 
of  Mohammed's  Koran.  Idolatry  shall  be  overthrown 
in  the  high  places  of  its  power,  and  unhappy  Christi- 
anity must  sit  in  sorrow  and  humiliation  within  the 
shadow  of  her  defiled  shrines,  beneath  her  pictures  and 
images,  until  the  time  of  her  deliverance  shall  come. 
Such,  if  we  read  the  lesson  aright,  was  the  decree  and 
purpose  of  Providence.  Such  is  the  verdict  of  history. 
Islam  is  thus  a  rebuke  and  a  check  to  idolatry  until 
a  spiritual  era  shall  dawn.  It  has  comforted  many  a 
devout  heart,  and  nourished  the  religious  instincts  of 
the  East  with  its  supreme  and  unfaltering  allegiance  to 
one  supreme  God ;  but  alas !  it  has  thrust  a  human 
hero  into  the  place  of  the  Son  of  God  ;  it  has  compro- 
mised with  man's  lower  nature  in  its  moral  standards  ; 
it  has  simply  given  a  religious  sanction  to  the  code  of 
the  desert ;  it  has  collected  the  odds  and  ends  of  Tal- 
mudic  Judaism,  of  travestied  Christianity,  and  barbaric 
heathenism,  and  has  propagated  a  religion  which,  while 
it  claims  to  teach  men  in  the  name  of  God,  is  simply  a 


Is  Islam  the  Gospel  for  the  Orient?        281 

strange  and  incongruous  medley  of  God  and  Mohammed, 
of  truth  and  error,  of  simple  faith  and  rank  superstition, 
of  high  aims  and  reckless  abandon.  Never  was  there 
a  more  bewildering  blunder  in  spiritual  discernment, 
or  a  more  astounding  eccentricity  in  religious  opinion, 
than  that  which  has  striven  to  indorse  Islam  as  a  re- 
ligion which  is  worthy  of  a  place  by  the  side  of  Chris- 
tianity, as  a  helpful  and  uplifting  power  in  the  world's 
regeneration.  The  Christian  sense  of  the  age,  and  the 
self-respect  of  Christendom  have  united  in  vigorous 
protest. 

Islam,  however,  is  not  simply  a  thing  of  the  past,  a 
relic  which  we  dig  up  from  the  prolific  dust  of  those 
ancient  seats  of  Asiatic  power.  Islam  is  here ;  it  is  of 
the  twentieth  century  ;  it  is  a  power  in  our  generation  ; 
it  is  something  to  be  studied  and  understood.  It  is  a 
political  factor  in  the  Eastern  question  of  the  very  first 
magnitude.  What  becomes  at  once,  when  opened,  the 
'•'  burning  question  of  the  straits  "  is  usually  at  first  the 
flash  of  Islamic  fanaticism  amidst  the  inflammable  re- 
ligious elements  of  the  Levant.  The  government  of 
Turkey  has  pledged  itself  to  Europe  again  and  again 
as  guaranteeing  absolute  religious  toleration  and  free- 
dom, but  the  pledge  has  been  politically  a  mockery,  and 
religiously  a  farce ;  while  any  attempt  on  the  part  of 
the  Moslem  to  claim  his  liberty  of  conscience  to  em- 
brace Christianity  has  proved  the  signal  that  at  once 
sealed  his  doom. 

America,  to  be  sure,  has  little  concern  with  the  poli- 
tics of  Europe ;  but  American  Christianity  has  a  high 
mission  and  a  noble  field  amid  the  intellectual  and 
spiritual  struggles  of  downtrodden  peoples.  Her  mis- 
sion is  one  of  sympathy  and  help  and  active  philan- 


282  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

thropy.  An  Arabic  figure  of  speech  designates  a  help- 
ful and  gracious  ministry  as  something  done  by  a 
"  white  hand."  American  Christianity  is  reaching  out 
her  "  white  hand  "  of  beneficence  to  the  nations  of  the 
Orient.  She  has  already  carried  to  the  teeming  centres 
of  Asiatic  life  some  of  the  highest  and  most  helpful 
elements  of  our  civilization,  and  is  grafting  into  the 
intellectual  and  spiritual  movements  of  the  Old  "World 
that  power  which  "  makes  for  righteousness,"  which 
both  sweetens  and  glorifies  human  life,  and  gives  it 
its  noblest  possible  impulse,  and  its  highest  possible 
destiny. 

America  can  do  much,  by  wise  effort,  and  cordial 
sympathy,  and  watchful  interest,  to  establish  through- 
out the  world  the  precious  principle  of  religious  free- 
dom. Her  whole  influence  should  be  thrown  on  the 
side  of  religious  toleration  and  liberty  of  conscience. 
This  is  a  lesson  which,  although  of  late  it  has  received 
remarkable  attention,  and  secured  official  recognition 
on  the  part  of  some  Oriental  governments,  has  as  yet 
failed  to  win  practical  acceptance  with  the  masses  of 
the  Eastern  world.  The  glow  of  American  sympathy 
is  to-day  doing  wonders  for  whole  nations  in  the  Orient. 
American  philanthropy  has  already  planted  ten  col- 
leges and  seven  hundred  schools  in  the  Turkish  Empire. 
Every  prominent  language  of  both  the  Near  and  the 
Far  East  has  been  born  again  with  American  literary 
and  religious  contributions.  American  missionaries 
have  within  a  generation  given  the  Word  of  God  to 
Eastern  peoples,  outnumbering  many  times  over  the 
population  of  the  United  States. 

Let  American  hearts  be  interested  in  the  welfare  of 
Oriental  nations,  and  enlisted  in  their  behalf  in  the 


Is  Islam  the  Gospel  for  the  Orient  ?        283 

high  services  of  human  brotherhood.  An  example  of 
national  unselfishness  as  wide  as  the  world,  and  as  deep 
as  human  want,  is  yet  to  be  given  to  men.  Let  Amer- 
ica crown  her  greatness  with  the  beauty  and  power  of 
this  example. 


J 


XV 

The  Recent  Crisis  in  the  Syrian  Protestant 
College  at  Beirut 


The  great  majority  of  missionaries,  as  the  World  Conference  Report, 
Vol.  Ill,  p.  38,  asserts,  are  in  favour  of  compulsory  attendance  at  religious 
instruction  in  mission  schools.  Why  ?  Not  because  they  willingly  shut 
their  eyes  to  a  "  bribe,"  or  because  they  are  ready  to  condone  the  evil 
system  because  it  pays,  or  because  they  choose  to  do  evil  that  good  may 
come.  .  .  .  The  missionaries  do  not  regard  their  education  as  a  bribe. 
.  .  .  To  all  thoughtful  missionaries  Christian  education  is  in  itself  a 
boon  they  are  bound  to  offer,  because  it  is  the  only  true  education.     .     .     . 

Our  Lord  gathered  crowds  about  Him  by  His  miracles,  and  then  taught 
them  the  Word  of  Life,  but  no  one  regards  His  miracles  in  the  nature  of 
bribes  or  adventitious  attractions  thrown  out  to  induce  the  crowd  to  come 
within  reach  of  His  teaching.  Why  not  ?  Because  these  miracles  were 
an  expression  of  Himself  and  of  His  whole  message.  They  were  an 
integral  part  of  the  message  of  the  kingdom,  with  all  its  fuller  light  and 
love.  And  in  exactly  the  same  way  education  is  a  necessary  part  of  the 
revelation  of  the  Christian  character  to  the  races  amongst  which  we 
go.     .     .     . 

To  quote  Sir  William  Hunter ; — "  The  weak  point  in  our  system  of 
Indian  public  instruction  is  our  inability  to  give  any  form  of  religious 
teaching  in  our  State  schools.  I  have  had  some  personal  acquaintance 
with  native  opinion  on  this  question,  as  Inspector  of  Schools  over  a  large 
part  of  Bengal,  afterward  as  President  of  the  Educational  Commission 
which  expanded  the  departmental  system  of  public  instruction  throughout 
India  into  something  nearer  to  a  truly  national  system  of  education,  and 
finally  as  Vice-Chancellor  of  the  University  of  Calcutta.  In  each  one  of 
these  capacities  I  came  into  direct  contact  with  the  leaders  of  native 
thought,  and  I  found  from  taking  the  evidence  of  193  witnesses  through- 
out India,  as  President  of  the  Educational  Commission,  that  these  leaders 
were  unanimous  in  lamenting  4the  absence  of  religious  teaching  in  our 
State  schools  in  every  province  of  the  Indian  Empire." 

A.  G.  Fraser,  M.  A., 
Principal  Trinity  College,  JCandyt  Ceylon. 


XV 

THE  RECENT  CRISIS  IK  THE  SYRIAN  PROT- 
ESTANT COLLEGE  AT  BEIRUT1 

AN  editorial  in  The  Missionary  Review,  on  the 
demands  of  the  Moslem  students  at  the  Beirut 
College,  suggests  that  a  further  and  more  de- 
tailed statement  of  the  situation  and  its  significance 
would  be  of  interest.  The  salient  facts  and  the  docu- 
ments quoted  bearing  upon  the  matter  are  drawn  by 
the  writer  from  official  sources,  so  far  as  available,  and 
will  serve  to  summarize  the  progress  of  events  up  to 
the  last  of  March,  1909. 

A  clear  historical  narrative  is  given  in  a  document 
issued  by  the  Faculty  of  the  College,  from  which  I  am 
permitted  to  quote,  as  follows  : 

A  summary  of  the  events  which  have  led  to  the 
present  crisis  in  the  Syrian  Protestant  College  may  be 
given  in  three  paragraphs  dealing  with  (1)  the  tradi- 
tional policy  of  the  College  in  the  matter  of  religious 
instruction  and  religious  exercises  ;  (2)  the  contention 
of  the  non-Christian  students  ;  and  (3)  the  deadlock  ex- 
isting between  the  governing  body  of  the  College  and 
the  non-Christian  students. 

(1)  The  College  was  founded  as  a  Christian,  mission- 
ary, non-sectarian  institution.  It  was  incorporated  in 
1863,  under  the  laws  of  the  State  of  New  York.  In 
1907,  it  received  a  firman  from  the  Imperial  Ottoman 
Government,  which  bestowed  certain  substantial  im- 
munities, including  imperial  recognition   of   its   legal 

1  The  Missionary  Review  of  the  World,  May,  1909. 
287 


288  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

status.  From  the  first  day  of  the  opening  of  the  Col- 
lege, in  1866,  until  the  present  moment,  a  period  of 
forty-three  years,  a  regulation  of  the  College  has  been 
uniformly  and  continuously  in  operation  ;  namely,  the 
requirement  that  all  students,  without  distinction  of 
religious  or  sectarian  affiliations,  should  attend  the 
stated  exercises  of  religious  worship.  This  require- 
ment has  applied  to  certain  academic  departments  for 
both  morning  and  evening  prayers,  and  to  certain  other 
professional  departments  for  evening  prayers  only. 
Such  religious  services  consist  of  the  singing  of  a  hymn, 
the  reading  of  a  passage  from  the  Bible,  and  the  offer- 
ing of  a  prayer  by  some  member  of  the  teaching  corps. 
No  student  has  at  any  time  ever  been  required  to  take 
any  part  in  worship,  except  to  be  present,  and  to  ob- 
serve the  ordinary  rules  of  good  order.  These  services 
last  for  about  ten  minutes.  On  Sunday,  interne  stu- 
dents only  are  required  to  attend  worship,  which  con- 
sists of  the  reading  of  selections  from  the  Bible,  the 
offering  of  prayer  by  the  preacher,  and  a  sermon ;  the 
entire  service  lasting  one  hour.  Interne  students  of 
the  Preparatory  Department  only  are  further  required 
to  attend  a  similar  hour  of  worship  held  on  Sunday 
evening.  On  Sunday  afternoon  a  short  exercise  for 
Bible  study  is  required  of  interne  students.  A  second 
regulation  requires  all  students  of  two  of  the  academic 
departments  to  attend  classes  in  Bible  study.  These 
classes  are  a  part  of  the  regular  curriculum,  and  are 
graded,  the  examination  grades  having  a  certain  value 
in  determining  the  academic  standing  of  the  student. 

Aside  from  the  two  above  mentioned  categories  of 
religious  instruction  and  worship,  all  other  religious  ex- 
ercises are  wholly  voluntary.  The  College  having  been 
founded,  and  having  uniformly  been  conducted  since  its 
foundation,  as  a  missionary  institution,  has  felt  justified 
in  maintaining  these  two  regulations.  These  regula- 
tions have  been  published  year  by  year  in  the  college 
catalogues,  in  English  and  Arabic.  It  has  always  been 
the  purpose  of  the  College  to  present  to  the  entire  stu- 


The  Syrian  Protestant  College  at  Beirut     289 

dent  body  a  clear  statement  of  the  Christian  religion, 
in  the  hope  that  it  might  commend  itself  to  their  ac- 
ceptance. 

(2)  As  for  the  attitude  of  non-Christian  students 
and  their  parents  toward  these  regulations,  it  may  be 
said  that  they  have  in  the  past  offered  sundry  objections 
to  the  policy  of  the  College  in  thus  requiring  compulsory 
attendance  upon  Christian  services.  Such  objections 
have  always  been  met  by  the  statement  that  the  regu- 
lations are  faithfully  published  in  the  annual  prospectus 
of  the  College,  and  that,  under  these  circumstances, 
registration  is  tantamount  to  acceptance  of  college  re- 
quirements ;  the  inference  being  that  inability  to  comply 
with  college  regulations  would  mean  either  not  enter- 
ing the  institution  at  all,  or  personal  withdrawal  when 
the  regulations  are  found  to  be  irksome.  Until  the 
present  year,  this  simple  inference  has  successfully  met 
the  somewhat  sporadic  objections  which  have  been  ad- 
vanced against  college  policy.  This  year  the  mental 
ferment  in  public  opinion,  which  naturally  resulted 
from  the  changed  conditions  in  the  empire,  served  in 
large  measure  as  the  occasion  for  the  development  of  a 
strong  movement  among  a  large  number  of  Moslem 
students,  of  whom  there  are  in  the  College  a  total  of 
about  120,  seeking  to  induce  the  Faculty  to  alter  the 
regulations  in  favour  of  voluntary  attendance  for 
Moslems.  After  various  negotiations,  covering  many 
weeks,  a  petition  signed  by  ninety -eight  Moslems  reached 
the  Faculty,  respectfully  requesting  the  withdrawal  of 
the  regulations  affecting  compulsory  attendance  at  re- 
ligious services  and  instruction.  The  Faculty  in  reply 
stated  its  inability  to  comply  with  this  request,  and 
published  to  the  entire  body  of  students  a  statement  of 
the  attitude  of  the  Faculty  toward  the  general  subject 
of  religious  instruction  and  the  conduct  of  religious 
worship.  A  certain  number  of  Moslem  students,  per- 
haps about  sixty,  thereupon  bound  themselves  together 
by  a  solemn  oath  (and  later  about  forty  others  have 
faithfully  promised  to  cooperate),  swearing  that  they 


290  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

would  not  again  attend  a  compulsory  service,  nor  a 
compulsory  class  in  Biblical  instruction  ;  and  swearing 
further  that,  in  case  such  action  of  theirs  should  lead 
to  the  expulsion  of  any  or  all  of  them,  they  would  re- 
fuse to  leave  the  College.  There  is  abundant  evidence 
to  show  that  they  still  further  agreed,  whether  under 
oath  or  not  is  unknown,  that,  should  force  be  attempted 
in  carrying  out  an  edict  of  expulsion,  they  would  then 
enlist  the  active  support  of  a  large  body  of  sympa- 
thizers from  among  the  population  of  Beirut  City.  It 
is  our  belief  that  such  support,  if  elicited,  might  result 
in  violence  of  various  kinds.  Practically  the  entire 
body  of  Jewish  students,  numbering  about  seventy, 
later  affiliated  themselves  with  the  movement  inaugu- 
rated by  the  Moslems. 

(3)  The  deadlock  is  serious.  The  Faculty,  after  pro- 
longed consideration,  feels  justified  in  stating  that  a 
crisis  of  unknown  and  most  threatening  proportions 
seems  imminent.  We  desire  to  state  this  belief  in  the 
strongest  possible  terms.  The  apparently  simple  solu- 
tion of  yielding  to  the  demand  of  the  students  involves 
matters  of  far-reaching  importance.  First,  under  the 
constitution  of  the  College,  the  Faculty  is  legally  in- 
competent to  take  such  a  step.  Again,  yielding  to  the 
students  this  widely  applicable  principle  of  religious 
voluntarism  within  our  own  College  would  inevitably 
invite  similar  movements  in  all  American  and  English 
institutions,  thus  raising  the  issue  of  the  relation  of  the 
American  and  British  Governments  to  the  whole  sub- 
ject of  the  capitulations  as  related  to  educational  insti- 
tutions, and  the  privileges  thus  derived. 

The  Faculty  is  profoundly  desirous  of  effecting  a 
modus  vivendi  that  may  avert  the  impending  crisis. 
Our  students  have  conducted  themselves  with  remark- 
able restraint  and  courtesy,  and  have  manifested  ex- 
emplary observance  of  all  the  regulations  other  than 
those  in  dispute.  At  any  moment,  however,  the  crisis 
may  be  precipitated  by  an  unwise  action  on  the  part  of 
any  one.     The  movement  is,  unfortunately,  not  con- 


The  Syrian  Protestant  College  at  Beirut     291 

fined  to  students,  but  is  fostered,  perhaps  controlled, 
by  secret  committees  in  the  city,  and  perhaps  in  Egypt. 
The  civil  influence  of  this  fact  cannot  be  too  greatly 
emphasized  or  deplored.  It  is  believed  that  the  stu- 
dents are  convinced  that  their  contention  is  sanctioned 
by  the  programme  of  the  constitutional  party  in  the 
govermnent,  and  that  the  programme  foreshadowed  in 
the  summer  of  1908  will  presently  receive  the  dignity 
of  law.  With  this  in  mind,  and  convinced  further  not 
only  of  the  sympathy  of  the  Moslem  public  opinion, 
but  also  of  the  sympathy  of  the  local  govermnent,  they 
have  appealed  their  case  to  high  authorities  in  Con- 
stantinople. 

The  foregoing  statement  was  issued  at  an  early  stage 
of  the  trouble,  and  since  then  the  Faculty  has  en- 
deavoured to  exercise  tact  and  patience  in  dealing  with 
the  students,  seeking  to  avoid  an  acute  crisis,  involving 
violence  and  the  perils  which,  under  the  present  govern- 
ment, might  attend  it.  Meanwhile,  several  of  the 
Moslem  journals  of  Syria  and  Egypt  have  commented 
on  the  situation,  with  inflammatory  partizanship  and 
surprising  bitterness,  while  public  opinion  in  Moslem 
circles  has  apparently  not  been  able  to  understand  the 
view-point  of  the  college  authorities.  Scant  attention 
has  been  paid  to  the  rights  of  the  institution  as  an 
American  educational  foundation,  initiated  and  sup- 
ported exclusively  by  private  funds,  given  by  Christian 
friends  in  America,  with  the  desire  and  explicit  purpose 
of  establishing  in  Western  Asia  a  Christian  college, 
where  a  broad  and  liberal  education  should  be  given, 
in  a  Christian  atmosphere,  in  practical  sympathy  with 
the  evangelical  principles  of  the  American  Mission, 
from  which  it  originated,  and  in  the  environment  of 
which  it  has  been  located. 


292  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

The  Moslem  view-point  has  been  emphasized,  even  to 
the  extent  that  the  College,  being  on  Turkish  soil,  and 
opening  its  doors  to  Moslem  students,  has  no  right  to 
intrude  Christianity  into  its  curriculum,  but  should 
either  place  itself  on  a  wholly  non-religious  basis,  or, 
otherwise,  should  extend  to  Moslems  the  right  to  claim 
facilities  for  Mohammedan  worship,  such  as  a  students' 
mosque,  for  example,  on  its  own  campus.  By  logical 
inference,  a  similar  differentiated  provision  must  be 
made  for  Jews,  Druses,  and  all  the  other  religious 
faiths  represented  among  its  students,  in  case  they 
should  demand  it  with  sufficient  vigour  as  their  right. 
The  proposal  was  even  advocated  with  much  insistence 
that  it  was  the  duty  of  the  College,  under  the  new 
regime  of  constitutional  liberty,  to  hand  itself  over 
either  to  the  Turkish  Government,  or  to  the  municipal 
authorities,  who  would  shape  its  policy  in  harmony 
with  the  supposed  scope  of  the  new  Turkish  constitu- 
tion, and  in  accord  with  that  conception  of  liberty 
which  is  congenial  to  the  Moslem  mind.  It  has  already 
become  sufficiently  clear  that  liberty  as  understood  by 
the  constitutional  government  will  not  be  interpreted 
as  granting  freedom  to  the  Moslem  to  become  a  Chris- 
tian, and  all  signs  point  to  the  resolute  shaping  of  the 
new  administration  in  the  interests  of  Islam  and  its 
propagation.  A  bitter  disappointment  evidently  awaits 
the  Christian  races  of  the  empire,  if  they  are  expecting 
a  fair  share  of  influence  and  power  in  the  government. 

The  right  of  the  College  as  a  private  American 
institution  founded  upon  its  own  religious  basis,  and 
entitled  to  shape  its  own  internal  policy,  is  not  conceded. 
The  fact  that  the  enrolment  of  students  has  been  en- 
tirely voluntary  on  their  part,  and  that  full  information 


The  Syrian  Protestant  College  at  Beirut     293 

has  been  supplied  to  them  and  to  their  parents  as  to 
what  was  expected  of  them,  does  not  seem  to  relieve 
the  situation  from  the  standpoint  of  Mohammedan 
public  opinion.  The  fact  that  there  has  been  no  claim, 
and  no  attempt  on  the  part  of  the  college  authorities  to 
force  the  consciences  of  the  students,  or  to  interfere  with 
their  religious  preferences,  and  that  all  that  has  been 
required  of  them  was  good  order,  and  observance  of  the 
rules  regarding  attendance  upon  the  public  religious 
services  of  the  institution,  has  not  seemed  to  mitigate 
the  attitude  of  hostility  to  the  Christian  tone  and  atmos- 
phere of  the  College.  That  I  am  not  misrepresenting 
this  aspect  of  the  subject,  I  quote  from  the  forty-second 
annual  report  of  the  College,  presented  by  the  Faculty  to 
the  Board  of  Trustees  in  1909,  as  follows  : 

The  supreme  object  of  the  College  is  the  promotion 
of  the  Christian  ideal  among  its  students.  Whatever 
success  we  may  achieve  in  other  ways,  if  we  fail  here, 
we  fail  in  the  fundamental  point.  .  .  .  The  College 
thus  believes  that  a  man  is  not  fully  educated  unless  he 
is  educated  in  his  religious  nature.  It  further  believes 
that  in  educating  his  religious  nature  the  claims  of  the 
Christian  religion  should  be  brought  to  his  thoughtful 
attention.  The  College  does  not  believe  in  proselytizing. 
It  does  not  believe  in  denouncing  other  religions.  It 
does  not  compel  a  student  to  sing  Christian  hymns,  or 
to  bow  his  head  in  prayer,  if  such  acts  violate  his  con- 
scientious scruples,  but  it  insists  upon  a  serious  and  re- 
spectful attitude  on  the  part  of  all,  and  strives  to  make 
clear  that  as  a  Christian  College  it  is  faithfully  striving 
to  illustrate  the  spirit  of  Christ's  great  motto :  "  I  came 
not  to  destroy,  but  to  fulfill." 

The  gist  of  the  matter  is  that  Moslem  and  Jewish 
and  Druse  students,  and  their  parents,  desire  the  educa- 


294  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

tional  advantages  of  the  College,  but  wish  to  separata 
themselves  entirely  from  its  religious  influence,  and 
from  contact  with  its  Christian  standards.  They  de- 
mand that  its  plant  and  endowment,  so  generously  pro- 
vided, to  the  extent  of  about  $1,635,763,  its  annual 
income  of  about  $85,000  (including  fees  for  board  and 
tuition),  its  corps  of  able  professors  and  teachers,  num- 
bering over  seventy,  and  drawn  to  its  service  by  Chris- 
tian motives,  its  splendid  facilities  (including  at  that 
time  sixteen — increased  in  1913  to  twenty-four — impos- 
ing stone  buildings  on  its  campus  of  forty  acres), 
dedicated  to  the  exposition  and  uplifting  of  Christian 
ideals,  should  all  minister  equally  to  the  growth  and 
power  of  Islam,  and  this  ostensibly  in  the  interests  of 
liberty,  by  sequestering  Christian  benefactions. 

The  authorities  of  the  College  have  felt  it  to  be  their 
duty,  as  trustees  and  guardians  of  sacred  interests,  to 
resist  this  onslaught  upon  its  traditional  principles  and 
vested  rights.  They  have  endeavoured  to  do  this  firmly 
but  kindly,  in  a  conciliatory  and  forbearing  spirit,  out 
of  consideration  to  the  misguided  students,  and  in  con- 
servation of  the  highest  interests  of  all  concerned  ;  not 
least  of  the  entire  student  body,  numbering  in  all  840 
(increased  in  1913  to  nearly  1,000),  and  of  the  Syrian 
community,  and  even  of  the  Ottoman  Empire  as  a  whole. 
In  this  era  of  misunderstood  liberty,  political  bewilder- 
ment, and  transitory  administrative  policy,  through 
which  Turkey  is  passing,  it  will  be  a  service  of  no  slight 
value  to  vindicate  the  true  scope  and  significance  of 
liberty,  and  firmly  to  resist  attempts  to  overstep  the 
bounds,  and  turn  liberty  into  license,  or  make  it  an  in- 
strument of  oppression. 

The  original  charter  of  the  College,  dated  in  1863, 


The  Syrian  Protestant  College  at  Beirut     295 

declares  its  purpose  to  be  "  the  establishing  and  main- 
taining, or  assisting  to  establish  or  maintain,  in  Syria, 
or  other  adjacent  countries,  a  college,  or  other  educa- 
tional institution,  which  shall  be  self-governing,  and 
founded  and  conducted  upon  strictly  Christian  and 
Evangelical  principles,  but  not  sectarian." 

Under  the  guidance  of  these  principles,  the  Trustees, 
in  cooperation  with  the  Faculty,  are  endeavouring  to  deal 
with  this  delicate  problem,  in  its  environment  of  preju- 
dice and  passion,  backed  by  forces  difficult  to  control 
under  present  conditions,  and  supported  by  an  untrained 
public  opinion,  with  false  views  of  the  real  meaning  of 
religious  liberty,  and  strongly  prejudiced  in  favour  of 
Islam.  It  is  evident  that  a  situation  has  been  created 
which  calls  for  much  wisdom  and  self-control,  combined 
with  firmness  and  essential  loyalty  to  a  high  trust. 
The  Trustees,  while  declaring  their  cordial  sympathy 
with  the  civil  and  religious  freedom  now  happily  estab- 
lished in  Turkey,  and  willing  to  encourage  all  wise  and 
profitable  aspirations  among  the  students  and  friends 
of  _  the  College,  yet  at  the  same  time  firmly  declare  that 
"  they  cannot  see  their  way  to  concede  to  demands 
that  are  at  variance  with  the  object  for  which  the 
College  was  founded,  and  with  its  invariable  practice 
during  all  its  history."  They  are  convinced  that  yield- 
ing to  the  demands  proposed  "  would  be  prejudicial  to 
the  true  interests  of  the  country  at  the  present  time, 
and  false,  as  well  as  injurious,  to  the  aims  and  efforts 
of  the  College ;  while  it  would  also,  in  no  small  degree, 
jeopardize  the  work  of  all  missionary  institutions  in  the 
empire.  It  might  thus  go  far  to  impair  or  destroy  the 
elevating  effects  of  the  educational  and  religious  opera- 
tions which  have  been  a  chief  factor  in  creating  the 


L_ 


296  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

desire  for  civil  and  religious  freedom,  and  which  must 
be  largely  relied  upon  for  its  successful  development." 

It  should  be  said,  in  conclusion,  to  the  credit  of  the 
Christian  students  at  present  in  the  College,  represent- 
ing numerous  Oriental  sects  and  nationalities  through- 
out "Western  Asia  and  Egypt,  that  they  have  behaved 
during  all  this  turmoil  with  exemplary  dignity,  and 
have  refrained  from  taking  any  part  in  the  disorder. 
It  is  gratifying,  too,  that  a  large  group  of  over  fifty 
graduates  of  the  College,  residing  in  Cairo,  have  written 
to  the  Faculty  in  vindication  and  support  of  the  tradi- 
tional policy,  the  abolishment  of  which  is  demanded  by 
the  Moslem  and  Jewish  element  among  the  students, 
and  urging  that  these  demands  should  not  be  granted. 

It  seems  desirable  that  a  supplemental  paragraph 
should  be  attached  to  this  article,  published  in  1909, 
which  should  give  a  report  of  the  situation  in  1913.  The 
year  following  the  trouble  opened  with  a  large  attend- 
ance, a  full  and  explicit  notice  having  been  previously  sent 
to  parents  and  patrons  that  the  Faculty  and  Trustees  felt 
it  to  be  incumbent  upon  them  to  maintain  the  traditional 
policy  of  the  College  as  to  the  required  attendance  of 
students  upon  certain  of  the  religious  exercises  of  the 
institution.  The  subsequent  years  have  brought  no 
further  trouble  or  disorder,  the  number  of  students  has 
increased  until  it  is  now  nearly  1,000,  and  there  seems 
to  be  no  diminution  of  interest  and  orderly  attendance 
on  the  part  of  Moslems. 


XVI 
A  Christmas  Gift  of  Prayer  For  Syria 


How  shall  we  offer  the  prayer  "  Thy  Kingdom  Come  "  ?  We  ought  to 
offer  that  prayer  as  seers.  Our  soul  should  be  possessed  by  the  glorious 
vision  of  a  kingdom,  the  vision  of  the  world  held  in  the  majestic,  yet 
gracious  sovereignty  of  God.  When  we  pray  for  the  kingdom  to  come, 
we  must  see  it  in  holy  vision.  The  poet  within  us,  or,  if  you  will,  the 
prophet  within  us,  must  be  at  will  and  at  work  every  time  we  pray.  The 
poet  within  us  is  the  mystic  architect  and  builder  in  the  soul  who  builds 
his  temples  even  before  the  first  stone  is  laid,  and  before  the  first  sod  has 
been  turned.  The  poet  deals  in  the  vision  of  the  finished  city,  even  while 
there  is  only  a  shanty  on  the  ground.  The  poet  sees  the  shining  minarets 
and  towers,  even  while  he  stands  on  the  first  clearing  of  the  desert  wastes. 
The  poet  dwells  in  the  quiet  haven,  even  in  the  midst  of  the  stormy  seas, 
and  the  poet  hears  the  pipes  of  peace  even  in  the  clash  and  tumult  of 
war.  The  poet  carries  in  his  mind  the  vision  of  the  finished  work, 
even  when  it  is  scarcely  begun.  So  in  the  kingdom  of  Christ,  we  must 
see  the  vision  of  the  perfected  city,  even  when  we  have  only  just  begun 
to  build.     .     .     • 

We  must  offer  the  prayer  as  seers ;  but  we  must  also  offer  the  prayer 
as  labourers.  The  seer  must  be  a  soldier.  We  need  to-day,  more  than 
anything,  soldier-saints,  crusading  seers,  practical  prophets.  The  vision 
must  get  into  our  hearts  as  desires ;  it  must  get  into  our  souls  as  verities ; 
it  must  get  into  our  very  bodies  as  the  energy  of  the  surrounding  elements. 
We  must  have  visions,  but  we  must  not  be  visionaries ;  we  must  be  sup- 
plicants, but  we  must  not  be  cloistered  and  exclusive. 

My  last  thought  is  this :  Offer  the  prayer  as  a  seer,  offer  the  prayer  as  a 
labourer,  offer  the  prayer  as  a  watchman  ;  we  must  watch  for  the  coming 
of  the  kingdom,  if  we  pray  for  it,  and  we  must  proclaim  the  breaking 
day.  The  watchman  of  the  old  world  did  not  simply  proclaim  the  terrors 
of  the  night,  but  he  also  announced  the  wondrous  breakings  of  the  day. 
The  old  world  watchmen  cried,  "  the  morning  cometh  "  ;  and  we  should 
pray,  "  Thy  Kingdom  Come,"  and,  as  watchmen,  record  its  coming. 

The  Rev.  John  H.  Jowett,  D.  D. 


XVI 
A  CHEISTMAS  GIFT  OF  PRAYER  FOR  SYRIA' 

AS  the  Christmas  festival  approaches,  many- 
hearts  are  asking,  "  What  shall  I  give  for  my 
Christmas  gift  ?  There  are  so  many  friends 
to  whom  I  wish  to  give,  and  I  desire  to  select  just  the 
right  thing  for  each  one."  In  this  dilemma  it  is  some- 
times a  real  relief  to  have  some  friend  drop  a  broad 
hint  as  to  just  the  thing  most  needed  or  desired.  "  But 
what  has  this  to  do  with  Syria  ? "  I  hear  some  one 
asking.  "  Who  ever  heard  of  a  Christmas  gift  for  a 
whole  country,  and  what  can  it  be,  and  who  shall  give 
it  ?  "  But  wait  a  moment.  Did  you  never  hear  of  a 
Christmas  gift  to  the  world — a  gift  that  has  given 
joy  to  millions  of  hearts,  and  has  been  itself  an  incentive 
to  other  gifts,  and  has  kindled  the  kindly  and  loving 
spirit  of  the  Christmas-time  in  many  lands,  through 
long  centuries  ?  The  country  through  which  that  best 
of  all  Christmas  gifts  was  given  to  the  world  has  been 
named  the  "  Holy  Land."  This  same  land,  including 
its  neighbour,  Syria,  is  now  sadly  in  need  of  that  very 
gift  which  centuries  ago  it  gave  with  a  free  hand  to 
the  world.  Syria  now  comes  begging  for  a  Christmas 
gift  from  the  kind  and  generous  hearts  who  have 
learned  the  true  joy  of  Christmas  from  the  Christ  who 
was  born  in  Bethlehem. 

But  what  shall  that  gift  be,  and  how  can  all  join  in 

1  Woman's  Work,  December,  1889. 
299 


300  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

giving  it  ?  Here  is  our  opportunity  to  drop  a  sug- 
gestion and  to  say  just  what  we  would  like.  The  gift 
which  Syria  greatly  needs,  and  which  we  feel  that  she 
must  have,  is  prayer  for  her  spiritual  welfare.  In  this 
all  can  join,  and,  if  it  is  real  heart-prayer  which  is  con- 
tributed by  each  one,  the  gift  will  be  precious  and  use 
ful.  It  can  be  easily  transmitted.  Just  wrap  it  up 
carefully  in  a  soft,  strong  covering  of  love  and  faith, 
tie  it  with  a  stout,  firm  cord  of  the  promises,  seal  it 
with  a  tear,  address  it  in  "  His  Name,"  and  give  it  to 
God,  and  He  will  see  that  it  reaches  us  in  Syria  safely 
and  promptly. 

A  Christmas  Crusade  of  Prayer  for  Syria  is 
what  we  ask  for.  It  is  not  at  all  an  impossible  request. 
Here  is  our  call  to  thousands  of  praying  hearts  to  join 
in  the  expedition.  The  weapons  and  the  stores  of  the 
crusading  campaign  are  all  in  readiness  ;  the  transporta- 
tion is  swift  and  ample  ;  the  great  Leader  of  the  hosts 
of  prayer  is  in  command ;  the  pledge  to  join  is  merely 
the  purpose  to  do  so  ;  the  actual  embarkation  is  simply 
to  bend  the  knee,  and  lift  the  heart.  In  a  flash  you 
have  touched  the  Syrian  shores — Beirut,  Tripoli,  Sidon, 
Tyre,  Carmel,  and  Jaffa  are  before  you ;  you  climb  the 
heights  of  Lebanon,  with  its  numerous  villages  cling- 
ing to  the  mountain's  side,  or  nestling  in  its  valleys ; 
you  scale  its  summit,  and  come  down  upon  Zahleh  and 
Baalbec,  and  the  plain  of  Coele-Syria ;  you  push  on  to 
Damascus,  or  you  make  a  flank-movement  upon  Naz- 
areth and  Jerusalem  ;  Bethlehem  you  take  by  assault, 
and  the  Mount  of  Olives  you  carry  by  storm.  The 
weapons  with  which  you  fight  are  "  mighty,  through 
God,  to  the  pulling  down  of  strongholds."  The 
Leader  who  is  in  command  knows  the  land  thoroughly. 


A  Christmas  Gift  of  Prayer  for  Syria       301 

He  has  trodden  its  mountain-passes  ;  He  has  drunk  from 
its  fountains  ;  He  has  walked  its  highways,  and  forded 
its  streams.  He  knows  its  history  for  these  nineteen 
centuries,  and  the  moral  desolation  of  these  waste 
places  and  these  dark  hearts.  He  loves  to  lead  a 
crusade  of  praying  souls,  and  He  leads  on  to  victory. 

Well,  then,  how  shall  we  mobilize  ?  It  must  not  be 
merely  a  holiday  parade ;  it  should  be  a  serious  and 
earnest  campaign  of  the  heart,  a  conflict  and  struggle 
and  strife  of  aggressive  prayer.  Let  us  set  apart  the 
month  of  December.  It  is  the  month  specially  devoted 
in  the  missionary  prayer  cycle  of  our  Church  to 
appeals  for  Syria.  Let  there  be  prayer  in  public  and 
in  private,  in  the  pulpits,  in  the  monthly  concerts, 
in  the  meetings  of  missionary  societies  and  bands,  in 
Sabbath-schools,  in  gatherings  of  the  Christian  En- 
deavour Societies,  in  Christian  Associations,  at  the 
family  altar,  and  in  the  closets.  Every  day  in  Decem- 
ber, when  you  commune  with  God,  remind  Him  of  our 
work  in  Syria,  and  ask  His  blessing  upon  it.  When 
that  day  which  reminds  the  Christian  world  of  Bethle- 
hem comes,  let  us  have  a  grand  union  of  hearts 
throughout  the  Church  in  providing  a  Christmas  gift 
of  prayer  to  Syria.  Will  not  each  heart  quietly  re- 
solve to  spend  one  minute  of  Christmas  Day  in  special 
prayer  for  Syria  and  the  land  of  Christ's  birth  ?  Will 
it  not  touch  the  heart  of  our  Lord  in  heaven  that  upon 
His  birthday  so  many  remember  the  land  where  He 
was  born,  and  will  He  not  be  pleased  to  answer  the 
prayers  of  so  many  grateful  and  loyal  hearts  ?  What 
does  our  privilege  of  prayer  mean  if  we  cannot  use  it 
for  a  purpose,  and  make  it  a  power  ? 

Now,  what  shall  we  pray  for  especially?    Let  us 


302  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

have  union  and  directness  here,  and  pray  for  just  what 
is  needed.  Let  me  suggest  some  subjects  for  prayer 
which  will  be  timely,  and  which  may  be  confidently 
urged  in  the  ear  of  the  Master  : 

Religious  Liberty.  In  the  Turkish  Empire  for  centu- 
ries, there  have  been  many  millions  of  our  fellow  beings 
who  have  not  been  able  to  think  aloud  on  Gospel 
themes.  No  Moslem  is  permitted  even  now  to  worship 
Christ,  except  at  his  peril.  Besides  the  vigorous  spir- 
itual despotism  of  Islam,  there  are  professedly  Christian 
churches  in  which  all  study  of  the  Bible,  and  all  ac- 
ceptance of  its  pure  teachings,  are  forbidden.  Yet  it  is 
an  open  secret  that  thousands  of  hearts  in  Turkey  are 
looking  wistfully  to  Christ,  and  waiting  for  the  hour  of 
full  religious  freedom  to  strike. 

Religious  Light.  Syria  needs  more  light.  The  ig- 
norance of  many  hearts  is  so  sad ;  superstition  is  so 
strong,  and  rules  with  such  a  mastery  ;  error  speaks 
with  such  a  lordly  and  defiant  air,  and  says :  "  There 
shall  not  be  light !  "  There  are  regions  like  the  moun- 
tain fastnesses  of  the  Keser-a-wan,  just  north  of  Beirut, 
into  whose  dark  recesses  not  a  ray  of  Gospel  light 
seems  to  penetrate.  Light,  light,  more  light  for  the 
mind  and  heart !  Thousands  of  children  have  now 
been  taught  in  our  schools ;  the  Bible  is  all  ready,  and 
widely  distributed  ;  tracts  and  books  and  papers  awaken 
thought  and  arouse  discussion  ;  the  Gospel  is  preached 
to  many  attentive  listeners.  We  need  the  Spirit  of 
Light  to  flash  home  the  truth  and  illumine  the  path  of 
life  to  many  who  cannot  yet  see  clearly  to  walk  therein. 

Religious  Power.  Oh,  for  more  power  in  preaching 
and  teaching,  in  organizing  and  guiding,  in  praying  and 
working !     We  long  for  the  power  of  the  Spirit  and 


A  Christmas  Gift  of  Prayer  for  Syria       303 

the  Word  in  their  resistless  energy,  conquering,  subdu- 
ing, melting  the  heart.  We  have  not  one  particle  of 
faith  in  merely  human  agencies  to  make  one  inch  of 
headway  in  the  true  conversion  of  the  soul.  We  want 
God's  power,  God's  agencies,  God's  own  supernatural 
methods,  God's  own  spiritual  touch,  and  His  regenerat- 
ing energy.  What  power  there  is  back  of  every  prom- 
ise of  the  Bible !  Is  the  Lord's  hand  shortened  that  it 
cannot  save  ?  Is  His  ear  heavy  that  it  cannot  hear  ? 
Surely,  no  ! 

Religious  Progress.  Pray  for  expansion,  growth, 
for  the  spread  of  a  spirit  of  inquiry,  and  the  establish- 
ment of  new  centres  of  influence.  Pray  for  the  de- 
velopment of  the  Native  Evangelical  Church  in  piety, 
and  in  service  for  the  Master.  We  would  win  the 
hearts  of  the  young  of  both  sexes  in  our  educational 
institutions.  We  would  have  elect  young  men  enter 
the  ministry,  and  the  churches  call  them  and  support 
them.  We  would  have  the  Word  of  God  go  forth  con- 
quering and  to  conquer. 

The  Presence  of  Christ.  The  incarnate  Christ  was 
once  here  in  the  flesh  ;  we  desire  Him  now  in  the  spirit. 
His  spiritual  presence  is  the  life  and  joy  and  hope  and 
power  of  the  Church  in  this  dispensation.  Christ  Him- 
self, as  He  comes  now  to  earth  in  the  personality  of  the 
Holy  Spirit,  is  the  best  and  most  precious  gift  we  can 
ask.  It  is,  however,  beyond  all  human  power  to  give, 
yet  within  the  range  of  human  prayer.  We  ask,  then, 
for  a  gift  of  prayer  from  hearts  over  the  sea,  and  this 
is  what  we  hope  you  will  ask  for  on  our  behalf,  and  for 
far-away  Syria.  Unfurl  this  banner  of  prayer,  loving 
disciples  of  Christ  in  the  home  land,  when  our  month 
of  privilege  comes  in  December. 


XVII 
"  His  Star  in  the  East " 


Saw  you  never  in  the  twilight, 

When  the  sun  had  left  the  skies, 
Up  in  the  heaven  the  clear  stars  shining 

Through  the  gloom,  like  silver  eyes  ? 
So,  of  old  the  wise  men,  watching, 

Saw  a  little  stranger  star, 
And  they  knew  the  King  was  given, 

And  they  followed  it  afar. 

Heard  you  never  of  the  story, 

How  they  crossed  the  desert  wild, 
Journeyed  on  by  plain  and  mountain, 

Till  they  found  the  Holy  Child  ? 
How  they  opened  all  their  treasure, 

Kneeling  to  that  infant  King  ; 
Gave  the  gold  and  fragrant  incense, 

Gave  the  myrrh  in  offering  ? 

Know  ye  not  that  lowly  Baby 

Was  the  bright  and  morning  star  ? 
He  who  came  to  light  the  Gentiles, 

And  the  darkened  isles  afar  ? 
And  we,  too,  may  seek  His  cradle  ; 

There  our  heart's  best  treasures  bring, 
Love  and  faith  and  true  devotion, 

For  our  Saviour,  Lord,  and  King. 

Mrs.  Cecil  Frances  Alexander. 


XVII 
"HIS  STAR  IN  THE  EAST'" 

IT  was  seen  by  the  wise  men.  It  kindled  their  faith 
and  hope.  They  arose  and  followed  it.  It  led 
them  to  Bethlehem.  How  little  the  world  knew 
of  the  existence,  and  how  little  it  appreciated  the 
significance,  of  that  marvellous  star — His  Star !  Herod 
fought  against  that  star  in  its  course ;  the  Church  was 
too  busy  with  her  lifeless  routine  and  her  pompous 
ecclesiasticism  to  take  notice  of  it ;  the  world  was  too 
absorbed  with  ambition,  and  too  entranced  with  guilty 
pleasure,  to  pay  any  attention  to  it ;  infidelity  scoffed 
at  it ;  philosophy  sneered  at  it ;  learned  Greece,  the 
home  of  literature  and  art,  was  too  cultured  to  be 
attracted  by  such  a  commonplace  incident ;  warlike 
Rome,  the  seat  of  political  power,  and  the  nursery  of 
selfish  greed,  would  not  condescend  to  give  the  matter 
the  slightest  attention.  That  bright  and  winsome  star 
glittered  and  blazed  in  the  sky,  and  those  humble  wise 
men,  after  their  weary  march  over  the  desert,  came  to 
Jerusalem  to  tell  the  world  of  its  existence.  There  is 
little  evidence  that  the  world  gave  any  heed  to  the 
wonderful  tale.  Some  faithful  hearts  were  ready  to 
welcome  the  tidings.  A  loyal  few  were  waiting  for 
the  redemption  of  Israel.  Yet  that  star  was  the  focus 
of  prophecy ;  it  was  a  gleam  from  beyond  the  skies  ; 
it  was  a  gem  from  heaven's  treasures  ;  it  was  the  herald 

1  Woman's  Work,  December,  1891. 
3°7 


308  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

of  a  new  day  ;  it  led  the  footsteps  of  men  to  where  the 
hope  of  the  world  was  cradled. 

"  In  the  light  of  that  star 
Lie  the  ages  impearled, 
And  that  song  from  afar 
Has  swept  o'er  the  world." 

Let  us  hark  amid  the  turmoil  and  noise  and  rush 
of  this  busy  century.  What  strange  tidings  of  a 
new  Star  in  the  East  come  to  us  from  over  the  seas ! 
Is  it  His  Star  ?  We  hear  of  the  Bible  translated  into 
foreign  languages,  the  Gospel  preached  in  strange 
tongues,  the  rapid  progress  of  Christian  education,  the 
growth  of  a  religious  literature  opening  up  fountains 
of  truth  and  grace  hitherto  unknown,  the  gathering  of 
churches  of  spiritual  believers  around  an  open  Bible, 
the  reverent  kneeling  of  multitudes  to  offer  prayer  in 
the  name  of  Christ,  the  sweet  songs  of  trusting  hearts 
in  humble  adoration  of  Jesus,  the  tender  scenes  around 
communion  tables,  where  lowly  and  penitent  hearts 
take  solemn  vows  of  loyalty  to  the  dear  Redeemer,  the 
noble  endurance  of  persecution  for  Christ's  sake,  the 
touch  of  the  healing  art,  with  words  of  loving  sym- 
pathy and  counsel,  in  the  name  of  the  great  Physician. 
Is  not  this  His  Star  that  we  see  again  in  the  East  ? 

Devout  readers  and  friends  of  Christ,  whose  thoughts 
turn  to  Syria  as  this  month  of  December  comes  around, 
you  need  not  doubt  that  it  is  His  Star  once  more  in 
the  East,  and  it  leads  your  hearts  to  where  the  young 
child  lies  amid  the  rude,  wild  scenes  of  the  Eastern 
world.  Follow  it  with  your  prayers  and  hopes,  your 
frankincense  and  myrrh.  Bring  your  gifts,  and  pledge 
your  loyal  allegiance  to  this  new  child  of  the  skies. 


"  His  Star  in  the  East  "  309 

Shrink  not  at  what  may  seem  to  you  a  dreary  desert 
of  toil  and  waiting.  This  bright  star  of  missions  will 
lead  you  to  another  Bethlehem.  It  will  bring  you, 
in  the  shadows  of  a  night  yet  dark  before  the  dawn,  to 
where  the  hope  of  the  long  neglected  Eastern  world 
lies  cradled.  Be  not  faithless,  but  believing.  What  a 
wealth  of  power,  and  what  marvels  of  achievement, 
were  wrapped  up  in  that  infant  of  days  in  Bethlehem  ! 
It  is  His  own  Gospel ;  it  is  His  own  love  and  power 
and  blessed  promise  which  we  preach  and  teach.  If 
Christ  is  Christ,  then  missionary  effort  in  the  name  of 
Christ,  and  in  the  power  of  Christ,  is  the  hope  of  the 
world. 

"  Onward  through  the  darkness 

Of  the  lonely  night, 
Shining  still  before  them 

With  Thy  kindly  light, 
Guide  them,  Jew  and  Gentile, 

Homeward  from  afar, 
Young  and  old  together, 

By  Thy  guiding  Star." 


XVIII 
A  December  Voyage  of  Discovery 


With  a  new  conviction  that  the  Gospel  which  we  preach  contains  the 
secret  of  the  ages,  and  is  the  one  solution  of  every  problem  which  still 
vexes  mankind ;  with  an  absolute  disregard  of  consequences  so  long  as 
nothing  but  the  truth  is  proclaimed ;  let  the  Church  proceed  to  turn  the 
world  again  upside  down,  and  there  is  a  chance,  nay,  more  than  a  chance, 
a  glad  certainty,  that  the  new  heaven  and  the  new  earth  in  which  dwelleth 
righteousness  is  nearer  than  perhaps  many  of  us  think  possible  to-day. 
The  Rt.  Rev.  A.  F.  Winnington-Ingram,  D.  D., 

Bishop  of  London. 

Nothing  teaches  us  like  missions  that  English  Christianity  must  have 
more  than  an  English  Gospel,  that  the  travelling  patriot  is  the  worst 
evangelist.  The  foundation  of  the  British  Church  was  a  mission  from  a 
Church  more  universal.  It  was  a  spirit  from  abroad  that  stirred  our  pagan 
bones.  We  are  not  Jewish  converts  ;  we  are  heathen  Christians.  I  do 
not  mean  that  we  are  Christian  heathen,  but  that  we  owe  our  Christian 
selves  to  an  ancient  mission  to  the  Gentiles.  Where  should  we  have  been 
without  Paul,  Boniface,  Augustine,  Columba,  and  a  host  more  who  turned 
from  the  Church  palpable  to  the  Church  possible  ?  .  .  .  The  knowl- 
edge that  makes  long  history  and  holds  the  far  future  is  the  knowledge  of 
a  kingdom-making,  nation-waking  God,  righteous  even  to  holiness,  and 
holy  enough  to  redeem  us  from  our  moral  graves.  In  a  word,  it  is  the 
missionaiy  idea,  the  missionary  faith,  and  the  missionary  policy  that  has 
the  key  of  empire,  and  the  long,  last  reversion  of  the  wide  world's  future. 
Principal  P.  T.  Forsyth,  M.  A.,  D.  D. 


XVIII 
A  DECEMBER  VOYAGE  OF  DISCOVERY1 

THIS  is  the  anniversary  year  (1892)  of  a 
marvellous  voyage  of  discovery.  It  was  one 
of  the  supreme  moments  in  the  history  of  the 
world  when  Columbus  sighted  the  Western  Continent. 
Four  centuries  have  passed,  and  the  New  World  has 
grown  to  be  rich  and  powerful,  and  is  the  arena  of  a 
civilization  and  culture  which  give  it  a  unique  place  in 
the  annals  of  human  progress. 

Is  not  this  an  auspicious  moment,  and  is  not  December 
— our  month  devoted  especially  to  prayer  for  Syria — 
just  the  season  i*or  those  of  us  who  believe  that  other 
continents  are  included  in  the  inheritance  of  Christ,  to 
turn  a  wistful  look  eastward  across  the  seas,  and  set 
our  sails  for  a  voyage  of  discovery  in  search  of  that 
"  kingdom  of  our  Lord  "  which  faith  tells  us  must  be 
there,  and  of  whose  existence  there  are  so  many  mani- 
fest signs  upon  that  great  chart  of  the  promises  by  which 
the  Church  has  sailed  over  wide  and  stormy  seas  ?  Is 
it  not  written :  "  All  nations  shall  serve  Him  "  ?  Is 
not  God  to  give  Him  u  the  heathen  for  His  inheritance, 
and  the  uttermost  parts  of  the  earth  for  His  possession  "  ? 
Are  not  "  they  that  dwell  in  the  wilderness  to  bow  be- 
fore Him,  and  His  enemies  to  lick  the  dust "  ?  Is  not 
His  name  to  be  "  great  among  the  Gentiles  "  ?  Is  not 
"the  earth  to  be  filled  with  the  knowledge  of  the  glory 

1  Woman's  Work,  December,  1892. 
3X3 


314  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

of  the  Lord,  as  the  waters  cover  the  sea  "  ?  It  may  be 
that,  like  Columbus,  we  shall  sight  at  first  only  some 
lone  island  of  light  as  we  peer  into  the  darkness  of 
superstition  and  ignorance,  but  just  as  the  island  which 
Columbus  discovered  was  the  prophecy  of  a  vast  conti- 
nent lying  beyond,  so  our  island  of  spiritual  light  may 
be  the  herald  of  those  immense  outlying  realms  which 
we  shall  some  day  win  for  Christ. 

"  God  is  working  His  purpose  out  as  year  succeeds  to 
year  ; 

God  is  working  His  purpose  out,  and  the  time  is  draw- 
ing near  — 

Nearer  and  nearer  draws  the  time,  the  time  that  shall 
surely  be, 

When  the  earth  shall  be  filled  with  the  glory  of  God, 
as  the  waters  cover  the  sea. 

u  From  the  utmost  East  to  the  utmost  West,  where'er 

man's  foot  hath  trod, 
By  the  mouth  of  many  messengers  goes  forth  the  voice 

of  God. 
Give  ear  to  Me,  ye  continents — ye  isles,  give  ear  to 

Me, 
That  the  earth  may  be  filled  with  the  glory  of  God, 

as  the  waters  cover  the  sea." 

Let  us  weigh  anchor,  and  set  our  sails  for  the  winds 
of  love  and  hope  and  strong  confidence  in  God  to  waft 
us  over  the  seas  which  separate  us  from  those  faith- 
discerned  shores.  It  may  seem  a  bold  and  hopeless 
venture  to  many  who  "  don't  believe  "  in  the  existence 
of  other  lands  than  ours  for  Christ.  Friends  who  have 
prayed  for  Syria  during  the  past  year,  come  and  breathe 
upon  the  spreading  canvas  of  our  good  ship  of  discovery ; 
and  you  who  have  given  your  gifts  for  Syria,  in  the 
name  of  Christ,  and  have  watched  for  tidings  of  God's 


A  December  Voyage  of  Discovery         315 

presence  there ;  and  you,  children,  who  have  wistfully 
longed  to  send  some  blessing  to  the  children  of  Syria  ; 
give  us  such  an  onrush  of  favouring  gales,  such  a  strong, 
steady  breeze  out  of  confident  and  believing  hearts,  that 
our  ship  shall  be  wafted  swiftly  onward  until  it  touch 
the  shores  of  that  new  spiritual  continent  which  the 
missionary  enterprise  of  the  Christian  Church  has  al- 
ready discovered,  and  is  yet  to  explore  and  possess  in 
the  name  of  the  Master. 

Land  ho !  The  gleaming  peaks  of  Lebanon  are  creep- 
ing up  out  of  the  blue  waters  of  the  Mediterranean,  the 
rugged  heights  of  the  "  goodly  mountain  "  are  coming 
fully  into  view  ;  up  and  down  the  old  Phoenician  plain 
are  the  cities  of  the  coast ;  to  the  north  are  Beirut  and 
Tripoli ;  in  the  centre  are  Sidon  and  Tyre  ;  and  away  to 
the  south  is  Jaffa,  and  inland  is  Jerusalem,  city  of 
sacred  memories,  hidden  away  among  the  hills  of  Judea. 

As  ships  sail  up  and  down  the  Syrian  coast,  past  the 
orange  gardens  of  Sidon  and  Tripoli,  the  wind,  if  it 
blows  from  the  shore,  sometimes  brings  away  out  upon 
the  sea  the  faint,  sweet  perfume  of  the  orange  blossoms, 
so  that  passengers  upon  the  deck  of  a  passing  steamer 
have  wondered  at  the  delicious  fragrance  of  the  air. 
So,  as  we  draw  near  this  land  of  sacred  memories,  there 
seems  to  greet  us,  as  we  approach,  a  strangely  sweet 
fragrance  of  the  hallowed  life  and  divine  character  of 
the  Christ  whose  native  land  and  only  earthly  home  is 
before  us. 

As  we  step  upon  the  shore,  we  realize  what  untold 
wealth  of  history  is  hidden  away  in  this  Syrian  land, 
awaiting  a  discoverer.  It  is  a  realm  of  buried  treasures ; 
glittering  relics  of  the  past  lie  scattered  like  jewels  in 
the  very  soil.    But  however  lovely  the  charms  of  history, 


316  The  Modern  Call  of  Missions 

and  however  sacred  the  memories  of  our  Lord's  life  upon 
earth,  these  things  are  not  what  we  have  come  to  search 
for. 

We  are  rather  seeking  signs  of  a  new  world  for  Christ, 
some  outlines  of  a  spiritual  continent  which  shall  come 
more  fully  into  view  as  time  goes  on,  and  be  the  scene 
of  a  Christian  triumph  which  shall  some  day  fill  the 
world  with  its  glory.  Syria  is  to  us,  upon  this  Yoyage 
of  Discovery,  like  an  island  prophecy  of  a  wondrous 
continent  beyond,  which  faith  can  already  clearly  out- 
line as  we  gaze  into  the  spiritual  possibilities  of  another 
century  of  mission  progress. 

When  Columbus  touched  the  shores  of  his  newly-dis- 
covered world,  only  the  Book  of  Nature  was  opened 
before  him,  and  in  it  he  could  find  no  tidings  of  the 
stupendous  destiny  which  awaited  the  Western  Conti- 
nent ;  but  we,  as  we  land  upon  our  ideal  continent,  find 
another  book  opened — a  living  Book,  full  of  prophecy 
and  promise  of  the  glories  of  a  coming  kingdom  which 
is  not  alone  of  this  world. 

The  first  thing  that  greets  our  eager  eyes  as  we  land 
in  Syria  is  the  open  Bible.  It  will  be  the  power  of 
God,  and  is  the  promise  of  a  new  life  and  a  glorious 
future  to  Syria,  just  as  it  has  been  to  other  lands  which 
have  received  it.  As  we  continue  our  search,  we  find 
places  of  Christian  worship,  where  the  Gospel  is 
preached,  where  the  love  of  Christ  is  proclaimed, 
where  hearts  unite  in  public  service  of  prayer  and 
praise  to  Almighty  God.  And  here  are  Sabbath- 
schools,  where  the  young  are  taught  and  trained  in 
Christian  knowledge,  and  we  can  hear  the  children 
sing  the  very  Sabbath-school  melodies  that  we  have  so 
often  heard  in  the  home  land.     As  we  pursue  our 


A  December  Voyage  of  Discovery         317 

search,  we  find  Christian  literature  scattered  every- 
where, and  we  can  visit  that  fountain  of  light,  the 
Mission  Press,  from  which  many  millions  of  pages  are 
sent  forth  every  year.  "We  find,  too,  the  Christian 
school,  the  higher  educational  institutions  for  both 
sexes,  the  Syrian  Protestant  College,  with  its  several 
departments,  its  schools  of  medicine  and  nursing,  and 
its  hospitals,  and  the  ministry  of  healing  throughout 
the  country,  at  the  hands  of  missionaries  ;  we  can  find 
Christian  homes  among  the  people,  and  family  altars, 
and,  if  we  could  search  it  out,  we  would  find  the  leaven 
of  the  Gospel  working  throughout  Syria,  with  its  trans- 
forming power,  in  many  hearts  where  as  yet  there  are 
no  very  manifest  signs  of  its  presence. 

Now,  let  us  ask  ourselves,  what  has  made  America 
such  a  land  of  light  and  liberty  and  noble  civilization  ? 
Is  it  not  the  Bible,  the  Church,  the  press,  the  school, 
the  college,  the  home,  and  the  ministries  of  Christian 
philanthropy?  These  are  the  agencies  which,  with 
God's  blessing,  have  been  largely  instrumental  in 
giving  us  a  place  of  power  and  privilege  among  the 
nations.  What  would  have  been  the  history  of  America 
if  these  mighty  forces  had  been  altogether  eliminated 
from  our  social,  intellectual,  and  religious  life  ?  And 
may  we  not  be  confident  that  what  God  has  done  for 
America  through  these  agencies  He  will  do  also  for 
other  lands  where  in  His  providence  He  has  introduced 
them? 

"We  must  note,  however,  that  the  conditions  which 
surround  the  workings  of  these  instrumentalities  have 
been  immensely  to  the  advantage  of  America,  in 
comparison  with  those  which  environ  their  entrance 
into  Eastern  lands.     Here  was  new,  fresh  soil,  and  open 


318  The  Modem  Call  of  Missions 

doors  of  entrance  for  earnest,  brave,  and  loyal  hearts  to 
take  possession.  Stalwart  men  and  women,  under  the 
pressure  of  conscientious  convictions,  and  with  hearts 
aglow  with  aspiration,  and  a  noble  mission  taxing  their 
energies,  entered,  in  the  fear  of  God,  into  a  new  land, 
to  work  out,  under  the  guidance  of  the  Great  Leader 
of  the  Nations,  a  magnificent  destiny. 

But  in  the  East  these  agencies  of  light  and  civiliza- 
tion, which  entered  America  with  a  free  step  and  a  high 
enthusiasm  and  an  indomitable  courage,  and  with  full 
scope  to  work  out  their  destiny,  must  face  many  diffi- 
culties, since  their  coming  is  viewed  with  suspicion, 
and  active  and  powerful  foes  spring  up  to  contest  their 
progress.  With  all  the  advantages  which  America  has 
afforded  for  the  development  of  high  civilization,  under 
the  inspiration  and  guidance  of  these  noblest  elements 
of  our  modern  life,  there  is  yet  much  to  be  desired  in 
American  achievements,  and  in  the  religious  life  of  our 
favoured  land.  Must  we  not  then  be  patient  and  con- 
siderate, and  not  lose  heart  and  courage,  as  we  witness 
the  conflicts  of  Christian  missions  with  the  mighty 
opposing  forces  struggling  to  retain  supremacy  in 
hearts  where  they  have  long  held  sway  ?  "We  will  be 
patient,  and  persevering,  and  loyal,  and  believing,  and 
prayerful.  Our  Gospel  and  its  noble  allies  shall  win 
in  this  struggle.  No  one  can  visit  a  land  like  Syria, 
and  trace  the  history  of  the  brief  and  heroic  campaign 
of  evangelical  missions,  carried  on  against  tremendous 
opposition,  and  behold  the  results  already  achieved,  the 
strategic  points  taken  and  held,  the  commanding  posi- 
tions already  occupied,  and  note  the  living,  undying 
energy  of  the  Gospel  as  it  steadily  advances,  in  spite  of 
determined  hostility,  without  having  his  heart  cheered, 


A  December  Voyage  of  Discovery         319 

and  his  faith  confirmed  in  the  reality  of  its  progress, 
and  the  certainty  of  its  victory. 

There  are  other  scenes  of  missionary  activity  that 
we  could  visit  all  around  the  coasts  of  the  vast  interior 
continent.  The  Turkish  Empire  itself  is  a  perfect 
archipelago  of  centres  of  mission  light  and  work.  And 
we  can  pass  on  to  the  dark  continent  of  Africa,  to 
India,  China,  Korea,  Japan,  and  the  islands  of  the 
South  Pacific,  and  find  everywhere  the  cheering  signs 
of  a  new  world  for  Christ. 

Let  us  have  faith — let  us  have  grand,  strong  faith. 
The  magnificent  forces  of  the  Gospel  are  actively  at 
work,  and  full  of  the  energy  which  God  has  given  to 
them.  Under  God's  guidance,  they  will  possess  the 
world,  and  make  all  things  new.  "What  honours  are 
now  freely  accorded  to  those  who  wrought  in  faith  for 
the  discovery  and  occupation  of  our  own  continent, 
who  "  walked  by  faith,  and  not  by  sight "  upon  the 
shores  of  America  hundreds  of  years  ago  !  Those  who 
in  their  day,  and  in  their  humble  sphere,  were  work- 
men of  God  in  preparation  for  the  great  future  of  our 
now  teeming  continent  are,  in  this  anniversary  year, 
the  heroes  of  the  hour. 

So  it  shall  be  with  those  who  toil  in  faith  for  the 
coming  of  the  world-wide  Kingdom  of  Light.  They 
shall  have  their  reward,  and  their  hearts  shall  be 
thrilled  with  the  joy  of  victory.  What  rejoicings  even 
now  must  fill  the  hearts  of  Carey,  Morrison,  Living- 
stone, and  all  the  heroic  band  of  pioneers,  as  they  be- 
hold the  kingdom  of  Christ  advancing  on  the  earth ! 

Our  Voyage  of  Discovery  will  be  in  vain,  however, 
unless  we  gather  a  solemn  impression  of  the  responsi- 
bility and  duty  of  the  Christian  Church  to  carry  on 


320  The  Modem  Call  of  Missions 

this  great  enterprise  with  renewed  energy  and  rising 
enthusiasm.  We  shall  have  missed,  perhaps,  the  most 
important  lesson  of  our  voyage,  unless  we  return  with 
an  earnest  purpose  to  deepen  our  consecration,  and 
widen  our  sympathies,  and  multiply  our  prayers,  and 
increase  our  gifts,  and  do  loyally  our  full  part,  in  this 
most  magnificent  of  all  the  services  of  man  for  man 
and  heaven  for  earth. 

The  new  continent  which  Columbus  discovered  was 
of  little  consequence  to  the  Old  World  at  first,  but  God 
had  marvellous  purposes,  and,  now,  the  New  World  is 
a  blessing  and  a  refuge  and  an  inspiration  to  the  Old. 
So  that  glorious  continent  upon  the  shores  of  which 
the  modern  pioneers  of  Christian  missionary  enterprise 
have  already  landed  will  some  day  be  the  joy  of  the 
whole  earth.  It  will  finally  be  peopled  with  God's 
Elect,  and  will  become  more  and  more  a  blessing  and 
a  praise  to  all  who  love  our  Lord,  and  long  for  His  re- 
demption. 

"  O  Father  !  haste  the  promised  hour 

When  at  His  feet  shall  lie 
All  rule,  authority,  and  power 

Beneath  the  ample  sky, 
When  He  shall  reign  from  pole  to  pole, 

The  Lord  of  every  human  soul." 


Index 


Abel,  Rev.  Charles  W.,  his  in- 
struction of  the  natives  of  New 
Guinea  in  the  British  laws,  35 

Africa,  early  missionary  efforts  in, 
18,  19,20;  commercial  advance 
in,  94-101  ;  railway  achieve- 
ments in,  96,  97  ;  model  stores 
opened  in  some  of  the  mission 
stations  of,  113;  movements 
toward  union  among  missions  in, 
201 

African  Lakes  Corporation,  99 

Agra,  St.  John's  College  at,  113 

Albertini,  Rev.  Johann  Baptist 
von,  his  hymns  translated  into 
the  languages  of  foreign  mission 
fields,  210 

Albigenses,  The,  their  witness  to 
evangelical  truth,  149 

Alexander,  Mrs.  Cecil  Frances, 
quoted,  306 

Alexander  VI  (Pope),  his  Bulls  of 
Concession,  Demarcation,  and 
Extension,  51 

Ali,  Safdar,  author  of  hymns  in  the 
Urdu  language,  208 

Allen,  Dr.  Horace  N.,  his  diplo- 
matic services  to  Korea,  28 

American  Board  of  Commissioners 
for  Foreign  Missions,  The,  in- 
dustrial missions  of,  in  South 
Africa,  104 

American  College  for  Girls,  Con- 
stantinople (now  named  the  Con- 
stantinople College),  86 

American  Missionary  in  the  Near 
East,  The,  245-261  ;  the  un- 
usual scrutiny  to  which  mission- 
aries and  their  work  have  been 
subject  in  recent  years,  245- 
247  ;  the  ordeal  not  to  their  dis- 
credit, 246,  247  ;  the  missionary 


has  been  a  problem  in  Turkish 
official  circles,  247,  248 ;  the  tra- 
ditional status  of  the  subject 
Christian  races  in  Turkey,  248, 
249 :  the  more  tolerant  attitude 
of  the  constitutional  regime,  249, 
250  ;  what  a  survey  of  missions 
in  Turkey  would  reveal,  250- 
252;  the  gradual  political  dis- 
memberment of  Turkey,  252- 
255 ;  the  relentless  attitude  of 
Islam  to  the  religious  freedom  of 
its  adherents  still  maintained, 
255,  256,  259;  the  old  censor- 
ship of  publications,  256-258 ; 
Christianity  destined  to  vindicate 
itself  to  the  Moslem  heart  and 
conscience,  260,  261 

American  Monthly  Review  of  Re- 
views, The,  article  reprinted 
from,  121-142 

Amherst,  Lord  William  Pitt,  Brit- 
ish Ambassador  to  China,  20 

Amoy,  union  of  missions  at,  in 
1862,  191 ;  Union  Theological 
School  at,  194 

Andraianaivoravelona,  a  Malagasy 
hymn-writer,  208 

Andrews,  Rev.  C.  F.,  quoted,  186 

Ansgar,  early  mission  in  Europe  of, 

*5 

Aoyama  Gakuin,  The,  200 
Apology    of    Al-Kindy,   The,  law 

passed  with  reference  to,  258 
Appeal  of  Missions  to  the  Modern 
Church,  The,  159-167 ;  the 
significance  of  the  present  ap- 
peal of  China,  158 ;  the  import 
of  the  appeal  to  the  modern 
Church  at  the  opening  of  a  new 
century,  159,  160;  the  clamant 
call  to  the  Church  of  present  op- 


321 


322 


Index 


portunity,  159-161 ;  the  divine 
right  of  religious  choice  to  every 
human  heart,  161  ;  missions 
stand  for  the  religious  freedom 
and  fair  treatment  of  nations, 
162 ;  the  proper  view  of  the 
question  of  indemnity,  162,  163  ; 
missions  an  agency  not  only  for 
the  religious  enlightenment,  but 
for  the  social  betterment  of  back- 
ward races,  163,  164;  the  im- 
port of  the  growing  world  en- 
vironment of  the  modern  Church, 
164;  the  influence  of  missionary 
cooperation  upon  unity,  165 ; 
the  debt  of  the  Church  to  mis- 
sions as  a  help  to  spiritual  vic- 
tory, 165,  166,  167 

Auburn  Seminary  Review,  The,  ar- 
ticle reprinted  from,  43-73 

Augustine,  early  missionary  service 
of,  15,  312 

Balfour,  Lord  (of  Burleigh),  his 
advocacy  of  the  cause  of  Chris- 
tian missions,  1 82 

Balkan  Peninsula,  its  lost  prov- 
inces, 252,  254 

Baltimore,  Lord  (George  Calvert), 
the  Maryland  Charter  given  by 
Charles  I  to,  64 

Banerjea,  Rev.  Krishna  Mohun, 
hymns  written  by,  208 

Bangalore,  Union  Theological  Col- 
lege at,  198 

Baptist  Conference  of  East  China, 
The,  resolution  favouring  union  of 
all  the  Baptist  Churches  in  the 
Chinese  Empire  passed  by,  in 
1907,  192 

Baptist  Industrial  Mission  of  Scot- 
land, 104 

Barotsi,  The,  French  missions 
among,  20 

Barrows,  Rev.  John  Henry,  ap- 
pointed Barrows  Lecturer,  29 

Barrows  Lectures,  their  interracial 
import,  29 

Barton,  Rev.  James  L.,  quoted,  76 

Basel  Evangelical  Missionary  So- 
ciety, The,  special  attention  given 


by,  to  the  industrial  and  technical 
training  of  its  converts,  103  ;  in 
Kamerun,  113 

Battaks,  The,  unsuccessful  attempts 
to  begin  missions  among,  31  ; 
successful  endeavours  of  the 
Rhenish  Society  among,  31 

Beirut,  Syrian  Protestant  College 
at,  86,  112;  theological  training 
institution  at,  202 ;  mission  press 
at,  272  ;  "  The  Recent  Crisis  in 
the  Syrian  Protestant  College  at 
Beirut,"  287-296 

Beirut  Mission  Press,  its  large  out- 
put as  a  distributing  centre  for 
Arabic  literature,  272 

Berlin,  Treaty  of,  its  stipulations 
concerning  religious  liberty  in 
Turkey,  255 

Bible  Translation  in  the  Levant, 
269-27 1 

Biswas,  Rev.  Jacob,  Bengal  hymn- 
writer,  208 

Blantyre,  the  commercial  centre  of 
British  Central  Africa,  98 ;  rail- 
way from  Chiromo  to,  100 

Bliss,  Dr.  Daniel,  his  services  dur- 
ing the  massacre  of  i860,  in 
Syria,  34 

Bohemians,  The,  their  witness  to 
evangelical  truth,  149 

Bompas,  Mrs.  W.  C,  her  work 
among  the  Indian  women  in 
Northwest  Canada,  207 

Bonar,  Rev.  Horatius,  his  hymns 
translated  into  the  languages  of 
foreign  mission  fields,  209 

Boniface,  Saint  Winfrid,  his  early 
mission  in  Europe,  15,  312 

Bonjare,  his  services  as  an  African 
hymn-writer,  208 

Bose,  Ramchandra,  author  of  well- 
known  hymns  for  the  people  of 
India,  208 

Bourne,  Rev.  Joseph,  his  mission- 
ary labours  among  the  North 
American  Indians,  66 

Boxer  Uprising,  The,  121-142; 
number  of  foreign  missionaries 
and  Chinese  Christians  who  per- 
ished during,  150 


Index 


323 


Bradford,  Governor  William,  his 
missionary  zeal,  17  ;  quoted,  58, 

59 

Brainerd,  Rev.  David,  missionary 
to  the  North  American  Indians, 
66,  68,  72 

Bray,  Rev.  Thomas,  his  sugges- 
tions to  the  Society  for  Promot- 
ing Christian  Knowledge  with 
reference  to  missionary  work  in 
the  American  Plantations,  67 ; 
the  foundation  of  Dr.  Bray's  As- 
sociates as  a  distinct  organization 
for  educational  missions,  68 

Brebeuf,  Jean  de,  Jesuit  missionary 
explorer,  54 

Brewster,  Rev.  William  N.,  his 
importation  of  valuable  machin- 
ery into  China,  1 16 

Bridge,  Sir  Cyprian,  his  cordial  ac- 
knowledgment of  the  services  of 
the  Rev.  James  Chalmers  and 
the  Rev.  W.  G.  Lawes,  29 

Bridgman,  Rev.  E.  C,  his  services 
in  connection  with  the  first 
treaty  between  China  and  the 
United  States,  20,  108 

British  Central  Africa  Protectorate, 
19 ;  recently  named  the  Nyasa- 
land  Protectorate,  98,  99  ;  indus- 
trial missions  located  in  the,  104 

British  Colonies  in  North  America, 
missionary  spirit  manifested  in 
the,  16,  17,  56 

Brown,  Rev.  Arthur  J.,  his  volume 
entitled,  "  The  Chinese  Revolu- 
tion," 142 

Brown,  Rev.  Samuel  R.,  his  services 
to  the  Japanese  nation,  27.  28 

Bryce,  Hon.  James,  his  advocacy 
of  the  cause  of  missions,  182 

Burlingame,  Hon.  Anson,  Ambas- 
sador to  China,  24 

Burton,  Rev.  R.,  missionary  to 
Sumatra,  31 

Busli  Negroes,  Moravian  missions 
among  the,  34 

Cairns,  Prof.  David  S.,  quoted, 
on  the  import  of  changes  in 
China,  12;  cited,  33 


Calcutta,  Triennial  Convention  of 
English  Baptist  missionaries  held 
at,  in  1907,  189 ;  Scottish 
Churches'  College  and  Collegi- 
ate School  at,  198 

Calhoun,  Rev.  S.  H.,  his  services 
during  the  massacre  of  i860,  in 
Syria,  34 

Campanius,  Rev.  John,  missionary 
to  Delaware  Indians,  63 

Campbell's  "  Maritime  Discovery 
and  Christian  Missions,"  quoted, 
48,49 

Canton,  Union  Theological  Semi- 
nary at,  194 

Capen,  Rev.  Samuel  B.,  his  appeal 
in  support  of  the  Laymen's  Mis- 
sionary Movement,  171, 173, 174, 
182 

Cape  to  Cairo  Railway,  19,  95,  96 

Carey,  William,  his  importation  of 
the  first  steam-engine  into  India, 
116 

Caroline  Islands,  educational  train- 
ing in,  by  American  mission- 
aries, 32  ;  annexation  of,  to  Ger- 
many, 32 

Carpenter,  Rt.  Rev.  W.  Boyd, 
quoted,  42 

Casas,  Bishop  Bartolome  de  las, 
quoted,  49,  50 ;  called  the  "  Apos- 
tle of  the  West  Indies,"  52 

Cecil,  Rev.  Lord  William  Gas- 
coyne,  his  tour  through  China  in 
1909,  in  the  interests  of  the 
foundation  of  a  Christian  uni- 
versity in  that  empire,  195 

Central  Theological  College, 
Tokyo,  200 

Century  Magazine,  The,  article  re- 
printed from,  277-283 

Chalmers,  Rev.  James,  his  influ- 
ential services  to  Great  Britain 
in  New  Guinea,  29;  instruction 
given  by  him  in  principles  of  in- 
ternational law  to  natives  of  New 
Guinea,  35 

Champlain,  Samuel  de,  the  mis- 
sionary zeal  of,  55 

Charles  I,  King,  Charter  of  Mas- 
sachusetts    Colony     given      by, 


324 


Index 


60 ;  Maryland  Charter  given  by, 
64 
Charles  II,  King,  Charter  of  Rhode 
Island  given  by,  62 ;  charter 
given  by  him  to  William  Penn, 
63 ;  charter  granted  to  Carolina, 

64 

Chatelain,  Jesuit  missionary  ex- 
plorer, 54 

Cheever,  Rev.  George  B.,  cited,  59 

Chentu,  West  China  Missionary 
Conference  held  at,  189 

Chentu  Union  University,  plan  of 
the,  193,  194;  Theological  Col- 
lege of  the,  194 

China,  entrance  of  Nestorians  into, 
15;  international  service  of  mis- 
sionaries in,  20-26  ;  entrance  of 
Protestant  missionaries  into,  in 
1807,  76 ;  constitutions  pro- 
claimed by,  in  1908  and  1912, 
76 ;  the  awakening  of,  to  intel- 
lectual and  commercial  activity, 
as  a  practical  result  of  missionary 
education,  93  ;  imports  and  ex- 
ports of,  in  1903  and  1912,  no  ; 
the  struggle  of  Christianity  in, 
120;  A  Defense  and  an  Appre- 
ciation of  Missions  in,  121-143; 
religious  and  missionary  sta- 
tistics of,  139;  educational  sta- 
tistics of,  139,  140;  literary  sta- 
tistics of,  140 ;  medical  and 
philanthropic  statistics  of,  140, 
141  ;  movements  toward  Church 
unity  in,  189- 195.  See  also 
"Missions  in  China,"  121-142 

China  Mission  Year-Book,  The, 
quotation  from,  138 

Chiromo,  railway  from,  to  Blan- 
tyre,  100 

Christian  Federation  of  China, 
The,  formation  of,  191 

Christianity,  methods  it  is  entitled 
to  use  in  advocating  its  claims, 
260 ;  its  right  to  win  its  way  in 
the  world  by  the  use  of  legitimate 
methods,  260 

Chung  Hua  Sheng  Kung  Hui 
("  The  Holy  Catholic  Church  in 
China "),  the  title  given  to  the 


consolidated  churches  of  the 
Anglican  and  Episcopal  Missions 
in  China,  189,  190 

Chung  Kwoh  Ki  Tu  Sheng  Kiao 
Chang  Lao  Hui  ("  The  Pres- 
byterian Church  of  Christ  in 
China  "),  the  title  given  to  the 
united  Presbyterian  churches  in 
China,  192 

Churchman,  The,  articles  reprinted 
from,  77-84,  159-167,  207-210 

Church  Missionary  Society,  The, 
pioneer  missions  of,  in  Africa, 
18;  assistance  rendered  by,  to 
the  establishment  of  a  British 
Protectorate  in  Uganda,  97 

Church  of  Christ  in  Japan,  The, 
198,  199 

Codrington,  General  Christopher, 
his  special  legacy  to  the  S.  P.  G., 
for  founding  a  college  in  Barba- 
dos, 69 

Colonial  Histoiy.  See  Missionary 
Factor  in,  43-73 

Colton,  Mr.  J.  Milton,  his  gift  of  a 
theological  seminary  building  at 
Beirut,  Syria,  202 

Columba,  missionary  work  of,  1 5, 
312 

Columbanus,  early  missionary 
service  of,  15 

Columbus,  Christopher,  was  he  in- 
fluenced by  the  missionary 
motive  in  his  voyage  of  discov- 
ery ?  49-52 

Commerce  and  Missions,  87-117; 
the  service  of  commerce  to  mis- 
sions, 87  ;  the  service  of  mis- 
sions to  commerce,  87,  88 ;  the 
record  of  missions  during  the 
past  century  in  vitalizing  the  dor- 
mant life  of  backward  continents, 
90,  91 ;  the  influence  of  missions 
in  awakening  a  larger  commer- 
cial outlook,  and  quickening  a 
call  for  foreign  commodities,  92— 
94;  Henry  Venn  on  the  com- 
mercial value  of  a  missionary, 
94  ;  Livingstone's  "  open  path 
for  commerce  "  has  led  to  mar- 
kets of  gigantic  promise,  94  ;  the 


Index 


325 


change  which  missions  excite  in 
the  native  attitude  toward  civili- 
zation and  all  that  it  stands  for 
and  introduces,  95  ;  missions  a 
stimulus  to  railway  enterprise  in 
Africa,  96-98;  the  commercial 
awakening  which  Scottish  mis- 
sionaries have  brought  about  in 
the  Nyasaland  Protectorate,  98- 

100  ;  the  commercial  impulse  of 
missions   in    South    Africa,  100, 

101  ;  in  New  Guinea,  101,  102; 
in  the  South  Pacific,  102 ;  the 
stimulus  given  by  missions  to  in- 
dustrial training  in  various  fields, 
103,  104 ;  missions  have  digni- 
fied labour,  and  introduced  the 
ideals  of  peaceful  and  industrious 
toil,  103-106;  lessons  in  stew- 
ardship among  barbarous  races 
are  taught  by  missions,  106;  the 
way  in  which  missions  indirectly 
stimulate  commerce,  107-110; 
evidence  of  this  from  China,  1 10, 
ill;  from  Japan,  III;  from 
Korea,  India,  and  the  Turkish 
Empire,  112;  schools  of  com- 
merce on  mission  fields,  112, 
113;  the  import  of  the  commer- 
cial awakening  of  foreign  nations 
in  the  East,  113-115;  improve- 
ments in  agriculture  often  due  to 
missionary  incentive,  115;  mis- 
sionaries who  have  helped  in  the 
development  of  native  enterprise, 
115,  116;  missions  entitled  to 
prominent  place  in  the  activities 
of  the  modern  world,  117;  the 
danger  of  having  imperialism  ex- 
clusively a  political  and  military 
enterprise,  117 

Conference  of  Federated  Missions 
in  Japan,  The,  199 

Conger,  Hon.  Edwin  H.,  his  fa- 
vourable testimony  to  missions, 
182 

Congregationalist,  The,  article  re- 
printed from,  187-203 

Constantinople  College.  See  Amer- 
ican College  for  Girls 

Cook  Islands.     See  Hervey  Islands 


CoSperation  in  Mission  Work  in 
India,  paper  read  at  the  Tri- 
ennial Convention  of  English 
Baptist  Missionaries,  held  at  Cal- 
cutta, in  1907, 189 

Cornaby,  Rev.  W.  A.,  quoted,  1 10 

Corporation  for  the  Propagation  of 
the   Gospel  in  New  England,  67 

Cotton,  Rev.  John,  his  missionary 
work  among  the  North  American 
Indians,  66 

Cotton,  Josiah,  his  missionary  serv- 
ices among  the  North  American 
Indians,  66 

Cotton,  Rev.  Rowland,  his  mis- 
sionary labours  among  the  North 
American  Indians,  66 

Cowper,  William,  his  hymns  trans- 
lated into  the  languages  of  for- 
eign mission  fields,  209 

Cromwell,  Oliver,  bill  passed  by 
his  Parliament  for  the  establish- 
ment of  a  Corporation  for  the 
Propagation  of  the  Gospel  in 
New  England,  67 

Cuba,  campaign  of  rescue  and  in- 
tervention by  the  United  States 
on  behalf  of,  73 

Culdees,  The,  their  witness  to 
evangelical  truth,  149 

Cushing,  Hon.  Caleb,  his  services 
in  connection  with  the  first  treaty 
between  China  and  the  United 
States,  20 

Cushman,  Rev.  Robert,  cited,  58,  59 

Cutler,  Manasseh,  his  missionary 
and  political  services  to  the 
United  States,  71,  72 

Cyprian,  martyrdom  of,  148 

Cyril,  his  mission  to  the  Slavs,  15 

Dalzell,  Dr.  James,  his  state- 
ment regarding  trade  in  a  Chris- 
tianized Zulu  community,  100, 
101 

Darlow,  J.  H.,  cited,  269 

Dartmouth  College,  foundation  of, 
69,  70 

Day,  Rev.  Lai  Bihari,  author  of 
well-known  hymns  for  the  people 
of  India,  208 


326 


Index 


December  Voyage  of  Discovery, 
A,  313-320 

De  Forest,  Rev.  J.  H.,  quoted  with 
reference  to  commercial  progress 
in  Osaka,  114 

Denby,  Hon.  Charles,  quoted,  86, 
108,  109,  182 

De  Redcliffe,  Lord  Stratford  (Sir 
Stratford  Canning),  255 

Dickinson,  Consul-General  Charles 
M.,  quoted  with  reference  to  the 
influence  of  American  missions 
in  Turkey  upon  commercial  re- 
lations with  the  United  States, 
112 

Diplomacy.  See  "  Missions  and 
Diplomacy,"  13-40 

Dober,  Anna,  her  hymns  translated 
into  the  languages  of  foreign 
mission  fields,  210 

Doddridge,  Rev.  Philip,  his  hymns 
translated  into  the  languages  of 
foreign  mission  fields,  209 

Downie,  Mrs.  IDavid,  her  adapta- 
tion of  Christian  hymns  to  Indian 
music,  209 

Duff,  The,  its  pioneer  voyage  to 
the  South  Pacific,  18 

Durand,  Sir  Henry  Mortimer,  his 
advocacy  of  the  foreign  mission- 
ary cause,  182 

Dutch  Colonies  in  North  America, 
their  missionary  record,  56 

Dutch  East  Indies,  mission  of 
Heurnius  to,  16 

Dwight,  Rev.  H.  G.  O.,  86 

East  African  Industries,  Lim- 
ited, 103 

East  and  the  West,  The,  article  in, 
on  "  The  Comity  of  Missions  in 
China,"  188 

East  India  Company,  The,  its  atti- 
tude toward  missions,  17,  18; 
Morrison  acting  as  interpreter 
for,  20 

Eddy,  Rev.  W.  W.,  his  services 
during  [the  massacre  of  i860,  in 
Syria,  34 

Edinburgh,  World  Missionary  Con- 
ference at,  in  1910,  165,  188, 197 


Edwardes,  Sir  Herbert,  his  in- 
terest in  the  missionary  cause, 
182 

Edwards,  Rev.  Jonathan,  his  mis- 
sionary services  among  the  North 
American  Indians,  66 

Egede,  Hans,  his  mission  to  Green- 
land, 16,47 

Elgin,  Lord  (James  Bruce),  Am- 
bassador to  China,  23 

Eligius,  his  early  mission  in  Europe, 

15 

Eliot,  Rev.  John,  46,  62,  65  ;  his 
translation  of  the  Bible  into  the 
Mohegan  language,  66 ;  book 
dedicated  by  him  to  Oliver 
Cromwell,  67 

Elliott,  Sir  Charles  Alfred,  aid  ren- 
dered by  him  to  the  missionary 
cause,  182 

Ellis,  William  T.,  his  volume  en- 
titled "  Men  and  Missions,"  183 

Endicott,  Governor  John,  charter 
given  by  Charles  I  to,  60 

Eric  the  Red,  first  colonist  of 
Greenland,  46 ;  his  Saga,  47 

Ericson,  Leif,  his  mission  to  Green- 
land, 46, 47 

Erskine,  Sir  James  E.,  his  cordial 
acknowledgment  of  the  services 
of  the  Rev.  James  Chalmers  and 
the  Rev.  W.  G.  Lawes,  29 

Evangelical  Union  of  the  Philip- 
pine Islands,  The,  201 

Fairbairn,  Principal  A.  M., 
Barrows  Lecturer,  29 

Federated  Missions  in  Japan,  Con- 
ference of,  199 

Ferdinand,  King  (of  Spain),  his 
patronage  given  to  the  projects 
of  Columbus,  49-52 

Fiji  Islands,  the  peaceable  ceding 
of,  to  Great  Britain,  a  result  of 
long  years  of  missionary  toil,  30 

Fish,  Hon.  Hamilton,  his  recogni- 
tion of  the  services  of  Dr.  S. 
Wells  Williams  in  China,  25 

Ford,  Rev.  George  A.,  his  adapta- 
tion of  Syrian  melodies  to  Chris- 
tian hymns,  209 


Index 


327 


Formosa,  hymn-book  prepared  for 
Formosan  Christians,  210 

Forsyth,  Rev.  P.  T.,  quoted,  144, 
312 

Foster,  Hon.  John  W.,  his  "  Amer- 
ican Diplomacy  in  the  Orient," 
13,  14 ;  high  estimate  placed  by 
him  upon  beneficial  results  of 
missions  in  Hawaii,  32  ;  his  sup- 
port of  missions,  182 

Fraser,  A.  G.,  quoted  with  refer- 
ence to  religious  instruction  in 
mission  schools,  286 

Fraser,  Sir  Andrew,  his  keen  inter- 
est in  Christian  missions,  182 

Frere,  Sir  Bartle,  his  interest  in 
and  support  of  the  cause  of  for- 
eign missions,  182 

Friends,  The,  their  just  and  lenient 
treatment  of  the  Indians  in  the 
Pennsylvania  Colony,  64 ;  in- 
dustrial mission  on  Pemba  of 
Friends'  Foreign  Mission  Asso- 
ciation, 104  ;  Friends'  Africa  In- 
dustrial Mission  among  the 
Kavirondo,  104 

Gairdner,     Rev.     W.     H.    T., 

quoted,  244,  276 
Gallus,  his  early  mission  in  Europe, 

Gamier,  the  Jesuit  missionary  ex- 
plorer, 54 

Garve,  Christian,  his  hymns  trans- 
lated into  the  languages  of  for- 
eign mission  fields,  210 

General  Council  of  Evangelical 
Missions  in  Korea,  200,  201 

Gilbert,  Sir  Humphrey,  the  mis- 
sionary spirit  of,  56 

Gilbert  Islands,  annexation  of,  to 
Great  Britain,  32 ;  long  and  care- 
ful training  of  the  population  by 
American  missionaries,  32 

Gillett,  Rev.  C.  R.,  cited,  49 

Gillett,  Prof.  W.  R.,  his  «  Religious 
Motives  of  Christopher  Colum- 
bus," cited,  49 

Gordon,  Rev.  George  N.,  his  mar- 
tyrdom in  the  New  Hebrides, 
149 


Gordon,  Rev.  James  D.,  his  mar- 
tyrdom in  the  New  Hebrides, 
149 

Goreh,  Rev.  Nehemiah,  author  of 
well-known  hymns  for  the  people 
of  India,  208 

Gotch-Robinson  Union  Theological 
Seminary  at  Tsingchowfu,  China, 
194 

Goths,  The,  message  of  Ulfilas  to, 

l5 

Governments,  Civil,  attitude  of, 
toward  Christian  Missions,  as  re- 
ported at  the  Seventh  Annual 
Conference  of  Foreign  Mission 
Boards,  40 ;  governments  are 
bound  to  respect  the  rights  of 
conscience  within  proper  limits, 
136 

Grant,  Charles,  his  interest  in  and 
support  of  foreign  missions,  182 

Grant,  Gen.  U.  S.,  his  arbitration 
between  China  and  Japan  with 
reference  to  the  Liu  Chiu  Is- 
lands, 26 

Gray,  Rt.  Rev.  R.,  his  early  refer- 
ences to  the  linking  of  Cape 
Town  and  Cairo,  19,  96 

Greek  Church,  The,  in  the  Levant, 
266 

Greenland,  early  missions  in,  16; 
visit  of  Leif  Ericson  to,  46,  47  ; 
visit  of  Hans  Egede  to,  47 

Grenfell,  Rev.  George,  quoted  with 
reference  to  missionary  influence 
upon  commerce  in  the  interior  of 
Africa,  95 

Grenfell,  Dr.  Wilfred  T.,  his  intro- 
duction of  reindeer  into  Labra- 
dor, 116 

Guntur,  All-India  Lutheran  Con- 
ference held  at,  in  1909,  197 

Gutzlaff,  Dr.  Charles,  his  services 
in  connection  with  treaty  be- 
tween China  and  Great  Britain, 
20,  108 

Hakluyt,  Richard,  his  letter  to 
Sir  Walter  Raleigh,  17,  57  ;  his 
"  Discourse  Concerning  Western 
Planting,"  56,  57 


3^8 


Index 


Hall,  Rev.  Charles  Cuthbert,  Bar- 
rows Lecturer,  29 

Hamilton  College,  missionary  pur- 
pose in  its  organization,  70 

Hannington,  Rt.  Rev.  James,  the 
martyrdom  of,  149 

Harmony,  The,  Moravian  Mis- 
sions' ship,  48 

Harris,  Bishop  M.  C,  his  advocacy 
of  Church,Unity  in  Korea,  200 

Harrison,  President,  an  advocate 
of  the  value  of  missions,  183 

Hart,  Sir  Robert,  his  interest  in 
and  support  of  the  cause  of  mis- 
sions, 182 

Hartzell,  Bishop  Joseph  C,  his  pro- 
motion of  industrial  missions  in 
Africa,  104 

Harvard  College,  missionary  pur- 
pose in  its  organization,  70 

Hatti-Humayun,  The,  255 

Hatti-Sharif  of  Gulhane,  The,  255 

Haven,  Jens,  his  mission  to  Labra- 
dor, 16,  47 

Havergal,  Frances  Ridley,  her 
hymns  translated  into  the  lan- 
guages of  foreign  mission  fields, 
209 

Hawaii,  fitted  by  missionary  toil  to 
become  a  valued  possession  of 
the  United  States,  31,  32 

Haystack  Centennial,  The,  171 

Hazard,  W.  P.,  cited,  63 

Heber,  Rt.  Rev.  Reginald,  his 
hymns  translated  into  the  lan- 
guages of  foreign  mission  fields, 
209 

Henderson,  Rev.  Charles  R.,  Bar- 
rows Lecturer,  29 

Hendrix,  Bishop  E.  R.,  his  quota- 
tion from  a  business  resident  of 
China  on  commerce  and  mis- 
sions, 109 

Hennepin,  Louis,  early  missionary 
and  explorer,  55 

Henry,  Prince  (the  Navigator) ,  his 
desire  to  propagate  the  Gospel, 
48,49 

Herrnhut,  how  it  became  a  factor 
in  the  international  intercourse 
of  the  world,  16 


Hervey  Islands,  Christianization  of, 
by  missionaries  of  the  London 
Missionary  Society,  30 ;  annex- 
ation of,  to  New  Zealand,  30 

Heurnius,  Justus,  his  mission  to 
the  Dutch  East  Indies,  16 

Hiraiwa,  Bishop  Yoshiasu,  elected 
as  successor  to  Bishop  Honda, 
199 

His  Star  in  the  East,  307-309 

Historical  Catalogue  of  the  Printed 
Editions  of  Holy  Scriptures  in 
the  Library  of  the  British  and 
Foreign  Bible  Society,  cited,  269 

Holy  Catholic  Church  in  China, 
The,  formation  of,  189,  190 

Home  Missionary  Movement,  The, 
an  outcome  of  colonial  missions, 

71 

Honda,  Bishop  Yoichi,  his  death, 
and  election  of  his  successor,  199 

Hong  Kong,  magnitude  of  its  ship- 
ping, no 

Home,  Rev.  C.  Silvester,  quoted 
with  reference  to  transformation 
of  village  of  Bethelsdorp,  through 
missionary  influence,  101 

Horton,  Rev.  Azariah,  his  mission- 
ary services  among  the  North 
American  Indians,  66 

Hsieh,  martyrdom  of,  150 

Huguenots,  The,  heroism  of,  149 

Hunan,  opening  of,  to  foreign  resi- 
dence, through  the  efforts  of  the 
missionaries  of  the  London  Mis- 
sionary Society,  40 

Hunter,  Sir  William  W.,  quoted 
with  reference  to  the  need  for  re- 
ligious instruction  in  the  State 
Schools  of  India,  286 

Hupeh,  opening  of,  to  foreign  resi- 
dence, through  the  efforts  of  the 
missionaries  of  the  London  Mis- 
sionary Society,  40 

Hykes,  Rev.  J.  R.,  his  estimate  of 
the  number  of  foreign  mission- 
aries and  of  Chinese  Christians 
who  perished  during  the  Boxer 
uprising,  150 

Hymnody  of  Modern  Missions, 
The,  207-210 ;  missionary  trans- 


Index 


329 


lations  of  popular  hymns,  207- 
209 ;  the  notable  service  of 
native  hymn-writers,  208 ;  the 
growth  of  union  hymn-books,  2 10 

Ignatius,  martyrdom  of,  148 

Ilala,  The,  missionary  pioneer 
steamer  on  Lake  Nyasa,  99 

Imperialism,  the  influence  of  mis- 
sions in  elevating  its  ideals,  37 

Imperial  British  East  Africa  Com- 
pany, 18,  19,  96,  97 

India,  mission  of  Francis  Xavier 
in,  16 ;  entrance  of  Ziegenbalg 
into,  16;  cooperation  of  mission- 
aries with  English  statesmen  in, 
17,  18 ;  increase  of  trade  in, 
during  the  Victorian  Era,  112; 
union  movements  among  mis- 
sions in,  195-198 

Indians  (North  American),  early 
missionary  efforts  among  the,  44- 
69 

Industrial  Missions,  104 

Ingram,  Rt.  Rev.  A.  F.  Winning- 
ton,  quoted,  312 

International  Law,  perpetuated  and 
extended  in  mission  lands  largely 
through  the  initiative  of  mission- 
ary teachers,  35-40 

Isabella,  Queen  (of  Spain),  her  pat- 
ronage to  the  plans  of  Colum- 
bus, 49-52 

Islam  and  Christian  Missions,  213- 
241  ;  credit  to  be  given  to  Islam 
for  its  insistence  upon  some  great 
religious  truths,  213,  214 ;  its 
credentials,  however,  in  their  en- 
tirety are  defective,  215,  216; 
while  Moslem  doctrine  has  much 
that  is  valuable,  it  nevertheless 
fails  in  what  is  essential,  216, 
217  ;  the  growing  importance  of 
the  duty  of  Christian  missions  to 
Mohammedans,  218,  219;  the 
incontrovertible  evidence  that 
such  a  duty  confronts  the  Chris- 
tian Church,  220-222;  the  special 
difficulties  of  missionary  work 
among  Moslems,  222  ;  some  se- 
crets of  Moslem   success,    222- 


224 ;  it  represents  the  spirit  of 
reform  working  under  the  in- 
spiration of  a  great  truth,  224- 
227  ;  it  has  enlisted  the  power 
of  moral  conviction,  and  the 
power  of  the  sword,  227  ;  its 
contact  with  Christianity  has 
been  with  its  corrupt  and  semi- 
idolatrous  forms,  227-229 ;  the 
magnetic  power  of  its  personal 
leadership,  229,  230 ;  it  pro- 
poses easy  terms  of  salvation  and 
easy  dealings  with  sin,  and  is 
full  of  large  license  and  attract- 
ive promise  to  the  lower  sen- 
suous nature,  230,  231  ;  it  has 
entered  into  conflict  with  the 
doctrinal  teachings  of  Christian- 
ity just  at  those  points  where  rea- 
son has  its  best  vantage  ground 
in  opposition  to  faith,  231-233  ; 
conversion  to  Christianity  has 
been  both  difficult  and  dangerous 
throughout  Moslem  history,  234, 
235  ;  the  challenge  of  Islam  a 
call  to  Christian  heroism  in  the 
modern  Church,  235  ;  effective 
methods  of  influencing  Moslems 
in  the  past,  236 ;  the  providen- 
tial import  of  American  missions 
in  the  Turkish  Empire,  236,  237  ; 
the  spirit  in  which  Christian 
missions  should  approach  the 
Moslem,  238 ;  the  message  of 
the  Gospel  in  its  fullness  is  an 
essential  part  of  the  missionary 
commission,  239;  the  Church  at 
home  may  have  full  confidence 
in  the  wisdom  and  fidelity  of  its 
missionaries  working  among 
Moslems,  240;  the  marvellous 
political  transformations  which 
are  apparent  in  the  centres  of 
Moslem  power,  240,  241  ;  let  the 
Church  aim  at  a  triumph  of 
prayer  as  its  most  hopeful  weapon 
in  the  coming  conflict,  241 
Islam,  Is  It  the  Gospel  for  the 
Orient  ?  277-283  ;  the  historic 
import  of  the  rescue  of  Europe 
from    Moslem  domination,  277 ; 


33° 


Index 


a  revival  of  interest  in  the  study 
of  Islam,  277,  278  ;  the  newer 
and  more  discriminating  estimate 
of  its  religious  values,  278,  279 ; 
what  it  has  done  for  mankind, 
279 ;  the  impossibility  of  its 
sharing  the  honours  with  Chris- 
tianity, 278-281;  it  became  a 
rebuke  and  check  to  idolatry 
until  a  spiritual  era  should  dawn, 
280 ;  Islam  is  still  a  mighty 
power,  but  its  influence  as  a  re- 
ligious and  political  force  is  wan- 
ing, 280,  281  ;  the  high  mission 
of  American  Christianity  in  the 
Orient,  281-283 

Jackson,  Dr.  Sheldon,  his  intro- 
duction of  reindeer  into  Alaska, 
116 

James  I,  King,  charter  granted  by 
him  to  State  of  Virginia,  17 

Japan,  opening  of,  to  intercourse 
with  other  nations,  26,  27,  76 ; 
the  international  services  of  resi- 
dent missionaries,  26-28 ;  com- 
mercial development  in,  III; 
industrial  expansion  in,  114, 
115;  movements  toward  unity 
among  Christian  missions  in, 
198-200;  Christian  hymn-books 
prepared  for  the  Japanese,  210 

Japanese  Church  Federation,  The, 
199 

Jerome,  annals  of  martyrology  com- 
piled by,  148,  149 

Jerusalem,  railway  access  to,  253 

Jessup,  Rev.  H.  H.,  his  services 
during  the  massacre  of  i860,  in 
Syria,  34 

Jessup,  Rev.  Samuel,  his  adapta- 
tion of  Syrian  melodies  to  Chris- 
tian hymns,  209 

Jesuits,  The,  immense  value  of 
•their  services  in  the  exploration 
and  discovery  of  the  North 
American  Continent,  53-55 

Jogues,  Isaac,  Jesuit  missionary  ex- 
plorer, 54 

Johnston,  Sir  Harry  H.,  his  advo- 
cacy of  the  missionary  cause,  182 


Jowett,  Rev.  John  H.,  quoted,  298 
Jubbulpore,  Union  Missionary  Con- 
ference held  at,  in  1909,  197 
Jubilee    Christian    Conference    in 
Japan, in  1909,  199 

Kamerun,  the   Basel   Mission  in, 

"3 

Kavirondo,  The,  Friends'  Africa 
Industrial  Mission  among,  104 

Keble,  Rev.  John,  his  hymns  trans- 
lated into  the  languages  of  for- 
eign mission  fields,  209 

Kennaway,  Sir  John  H.,  his  inter- 
est in  the  cause  of  Christian  mis- 
sions, 182 

Kennedy,  John  S.,  a  generous 
friend  and  supporter  of  Christian 
missions,  182 

Khama,  King,  international  value 
of  missions  in  his  country,  20 

Kimball,  Harriet  McEwan,  verse 
by,  see  title  page 

King,  Hon.  Hamilton,  his  favour- 
able testimony  to  missions,  182 

Kingchowfu,  Union  Theological 
Seminary  at,  194 

King's  College  (now  Columbia 
University),  missionary  purpose 
in  its  organization,  68,  69 

Kinnaird,  Lord,  his  interest  in  and 
support  of  the  missionary  cause, 
182 

Kirkland,  Rev.  Samuel,  his  foun- 
dation of  Hamilton  College,  70, 

72 

Knox,  Rev.  George  William,  his 
lectures  in  mission  lands,  29 

Kodaikanal,  All-India  Lutheran 
Conference  held  at,  in  1905,  197 

Korea,  diplomatic  relations  of,  with 
the  United  States  facilitated  by 
Dr.  H.  N.  Allen,  28 ;  commer- 
cial advance  in,  112  ;  movements 
toward  unity  among  missions  in, 
200,  201  ;  Christian  hymn-books 
prepared  for  the  Koreans,  210 

Krapf,  Rev.  Johann  Ludwig,  18; 
his  prophetic  vision  of  missionary 
advance  in  Africa,  19 

Kucheng,  the  martyr  band  of,  149 


Index 


33* 


Kumi-ai  Churches,  The,  199 

Labrador,  visit  of  Jens  Haven  to, 
in  1764,  16,  47 

Lagrene,  M.  de,  his  connection 
with  the  Toleration  Clause  in 
treaties  with  China,  23 

Lake  Nyasa,  progress  in  steam 
navigation  on,  since  1875,  99 

Lallemant,  Daniel,  Jesuit  mission- 
ary explorer,  54 

Lanier,  Sidney,  quoted,  167 

Lavves,  Rev.  W.  G.,  his  services  to 
Great  Britain  in  anticipation  of 
the  British  occupation  of  South- 
ern New  Guinea,  29 

Lawrence,  Lord  John,  his  interest 
in  foreign  missions,  182 

Lawrence,  Sir  Henry,  his  interest 
in  foreign  missions,  182 

Laws,  Dr.  Robert,  his  management 
of  the  first  electric  plant  in  Mid- 
Africa,  116 

Laymen's  Committee  of  One 
Hundred  of  the  Protestant 
Episcopal  Church,  175 

Laymen's  Missionary  Movement, 
The,  origin  of,  171— 173  ;  appeal 
of  Dr.  Capen  in  support  of,  173, 
174;  delegation  to  England  in 
the  interests  of  extension  of,  174  ; 
convention  of,  at  Toronto,  174, 
175  ;  campaign  in  the  United 
States  during  winter  and  spring 
of  1909-1910;  the  Movement  a 
present-day  revival  of  religion, 
1 78-1 8 1  ;  it  stands  for  a  sound 
and  valuable  feature  of  Church 
life  and  progress,  181-183; 
many  distinguished  laymen  have 
been  zealous  advocates  of  mis- 
sions, 182,  183;  the  Movement 
works  in  the  interests  of  the  re- 
vival of  the  ideal  of  Christian 
unity,  183,  184 

Laymen's  Movement,  The  :  An  In- 
terpretation, 1 7 1- 1 84.  See  Lay- 
men's Missionary  Movement 

League  for  the  Promotion  of  the 
Union  of  Christian  Churches,  in 
Japan,  199 


Legaspi,  Miguel  Lopez  de,  his 
expedition    to    the    Philippines, 

52 

Lessons  of  Martyrdom,  The :  Its 
Message  to  the  Church  of  Our 
Day.     See  Martyrdom 

Levant,  Strategic  Import  of  Mis- 
sions in  the,  265-274 ;  the  Le- 
vant is  old  strategic  ground  in 
the  religious  history  of  the  world, 
265 ;  a  reformed  Christianity 
needed  in  Western  Asia,  266, 
267  ;  Christianity  has  been  dis- 
credited for  centuries  in  the  eyes 
of  the  Moslem,  267,  268 ;  the 
ultimate  conversion  of  Islam 
conditioned  upon  a  reformed 
Christianity,  268-270 ;  the  lan- 
guages of  the  Levant  have  been 
made  powerful  evangelistic  agen- 
cies, 270-272;  the  wide  field 
opening  to  native  Arabic-speak- 
ing evangelists,  272,  273  ;  mis- 
sions working  for  the  regener- 
ation of  the  Orient,  273,  274 

Liang  Cheng,  Sir  Chentung,  quoted, 
108,  109 

Livingstone,  Dr.  David,  18,  19 ; 
quoted,  86,  94  ;  his  "  open  path  " 
around  Lake  Nyasa,  96,  98; 
quoted,  144 

Livingstonia  Central  Africa  Trad- 
ing Company,  99 

London  Missionary  Society,  work 
of  its  missionaries  in  the  South 
Pacific  Islands,  18;  in  the  Her- 
vey  Islands,  30 ;  in  Hunan  and 
Hupeh,  40 

Lovedale,  the  missionary  institu- 
tion at,  105 

Low,  Hon.  Seth,  his  interest  in  the 
missionary  enterprise,  182 

Lutheran  General  Synod,  indus- 
trial mission  of  the,  on  the  West 
Coast  of  Africa,  104 

Lutheran  Missions  in  China,  Con- 
ference formed  by,  193 

Lyman,  Rev.  Henry,  his  martyr- 
dom in  Sumatra,  31 

Lyte,  Rev.  Henry  Francis,  his 
hymns    translated    into   the  Ian- 


332 


Index 


guages  of  foreign  mission  fields, 
209 

McCartee,  Dr.  D.  B.,  his  diplo- 
matic services  in  China  and 
Japan,  25,  26 

Macdonald,  Prof.  William,  his 
"  Select  Charters  and  Other 
Documents  Illustrative  of  Amer- 
ican History,"  cited,  17 

Macdonald,  Rev.  Duncan  Black, 
quoted,  42,  264 

Mackay,  Alexander  M.,  his  sugges- 
tion of  a  railway  from  the  east 
coast  of  Africa  to  the  Victoria 
Nyanza,  96 ;  his  introduction  of 
modern  tools  into  Uganda,  116 

Mackenzie,  Rev.  John,  his  notable 
services  in  South  Africa,  18,  19 

Mackenzie,  Rt.  Rev.  Charles  Fred- 
erick, a  pioneer  missionary  in 
Central  Africa,  18,  19,  96 

McKinley,  President,  his  friendly 
interest  in  missions,  183 

Madras,  General  Missionary  Con- 
ference at,  in  1902,  188 

Magellan,  Fernando,  his  expedition 
to  the  Philippines,  in  1521,  52 

Mahan,  Admiral  A.  T.,  his  advo- 
cacy of  the  missionary  cause,  182 

Major,  R.  H.,  his  "  Select  Letters 
of  Christopher  Columbus,"  cited, 

Manchuria,  union  of  Scottish  and 
Irish  missions  in,  191,  192 

Maoris,  The,  missionary  labours 
among,  facilitated  the  peaceful 
attachment  of  New  Zealand  to 
the  British  Empire,  30 

Marquette,  Pere  Jacques,  his  dis- 
covery of  the  upper  Mississippi 
River,  54  ;  the  honours  accorded 
him,  55 

Marsden,  Rev.  Samuel,  a  pioneer 
empire-builder  in  New  Zealand, 
30 

Marshall  Islands,  educational  train- 
ing in,  by  American  mission- 
aries, 32  ;  annexation  of,  to  Ger- 
many, 32 

Martel,    Charles,   indebtedness    of 


Europe  to,  for  his  successful  re- 
sistance to  the  Moslem  invader, 
277 

Martin,  Dr.  W.  A.  P.,  his  services 
in  connection  with  the  Treaty  of 
Tientsin,  21-23,  108;  his  expo- 
sition of  the  principles  of  inter- 
national law  in  China,  34 

Martyrdom,  The  Lessons  of:  Its 
Message  to  the  Church  of  Our 
Day,  145-155 ;  martyrdom  a 
notable  fact  of  Church  history, 
145  ;  not  prominent  in  Scripture 
for  good  reasons,  146  ;  its  mean- 
ing as  a  phase  of  Christian  ex- 
perience, 147,  148 ;  the  early 
martyrologies,  148,  149 ;  modern 
examples  in  missionary  history, 
149,  150;  the  Chinese  roll-call, 
150-152 ;  its  lesson  to  the 
modern  Church,  153;  martyr- 
dom a  supreme  test,  a  crowning 
testimony,  a  noble  example,  and 
a  heroic  means  of  grace,  153— 
155  ;  living  as  well  as  dying  for 
Christ  may  be  made  a  sign  of 
unselfish  heroism  in  our  day,  155 

Massachusetts  Colony,  charter  of, 
17,  60,  61 

Massacres  in  the  Orient,  their  dan- 
ger to  the  foreign  resident,  34 

Mayhew  Family,  The,  their  mis- 
sionary labours  among  the  In- 
dians of  New  England,  62 ;  their 
special  missions  on  Martha's 
Vineyard,  66 

Medical  Schools  in  China,  194 

Meiji  Era,  The,  monumental 
changes  during,  27 

Meiji  Gakuin,  The,  a  product  of 
union  movements  in  missionary 
education,  199,  200 

Men  and  Missions,  article  reprinted 
from,  87-117 

Messenger  of  Peace,  The,  ship  built 
by  the  Rev.  John  Williams,  1 16 

Methodist  Church  of  Japan,  The, 
its  establishment  in  1907,  199 

Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  indus- 
trial missions  of,  in  Mashona- 
land,  104 


Index 


333 


Methodius,  his  mission  to  the 
Slavs,  15 

Missionary  Factor  in  Colonial  His- 
tory, The,  43-73 ;  its  presence 
in  the  colonial  history  of  Amer- 
ica, 45-48 ;  the  missionary 
motive  of  Columbus,  49-52 ; 
"  The  Jesuit  Relations  and  Al- 
lied Documents,"  54,  55 ;  mis- 
sionary efforts  in  the  Dutch 
colonization  of  America,  56  ;  the 
missionary  motive  in  the  British 
colonial  establishments  in  North 
America,  55-65  ;  early  mission- 
ary efforts  among  the  Indians, 
65-67  ;  British  missionary  work 
in  the  colonies,  66-69  >  the  mis- 
sionary motive  an  impulse  in  the 
founding  of  early  American  edu- 
cational institutions,  68-71  ;  the 
value  of  a  missionary  motive  in 
colonial  expansion,  70-73 

Missionary  Herald,  The,  article  re- 
printed from,  265-274 

Missionary  Message,  The,  quota- 
tion from,  120,  212 

Missionary  Motive,  The,  its  histor- 
ical significance,  7  ;  its  influence 
worthy  of  study  as  a  factor  in 
national  and  racial  progress,  8 

Missionary  Review  of  the  World, 
The,  articles  reprinted  from,  13- 
40,  213-241,  245-261,  287-296 

Missions  and  Diplomacy,  13-40; 
have  missions  proved  a  factor  in 
the  development  of  international 
ties  ?  14 ;  their  influence  in  early 
explorations,  15,  16;  the  diplo- 
matic helpfulness  of  a  loyal  na- 
tive Christian  community,  18 ;  the 
important  service  of  missions  in 
African  colonization,  18,  19 ; 
their  value  in  diplomatic  inter- 
course with  China,  20-25  >  with 
Japan,  24-28;  with  Korea,  27  ; 
with  Australasia  and  the  South 
Seas,  29-31  ;  with  Hawaii  and 
the  Philippines,  32 ;  the  value  of 
missionary  services  in  times  of 
war  and  public  calamity,  espe- 
cially at  the  Siege  of  Peking,  32, 


33  ;  the  effective  service  some- 
times rendered  by  missionaries 
in  the  interests  of  peace,  32,  33  ; 
their  mission  as  mediators,  paci- 
ficators, and  saviours  of  lives  and 
property,  34 ;  the  help  they  have 
rendered  in  the  exposition  of  in- 
ternational law,  34,  35 ;  what 
they  have  done  for  the  safety  of 
shipwrecked  mariners,  35,  36; 
the  significance  of  this  interna- 
tional role,  36 ;  their  help  in  de- 
fining interracial  obligations  in 
the  light  of  Christian  principles, 
37  ;  the  privilege  of  a  mission- 
ary to  exercise  a  kindly  influence 
in  the  interests  of  diplomacy,  38 ; 
he  should  exercise  this  function 
with  tact,  and  avoid  political 
meddling,  39 ;  is  he  entitled  to 
his  treaty  rights  ?  39 ;  the  atti- 
tude of  civil  governments  toward 
Christian  missions  usually 
friendly  and  helpful,  40 

Missions  and  National  Evolu- 
tion, 77-84 ;  missions  as  a  fac- 
tor in  national  evolution,  77,  78  ; 
the  future  of  nations  largely  de- 
termined by  the  reception  they 
give  to  missionary  agencies,  79 ; 
an  Oriental  Christendom  in  the 
making,  80 ;  the  rapid  evolution 
of  national  life  in  the  East,  81  ; 
missions  God's  chosen  agency  to 
guide  nations  toward  Christian 
ideals,  8 1  ;  the  quiet  influence  of 
missions  as  a  moulding  power  in 
contemporary  history,  83 ;  im- 
portant results  of  missionary  in- 
fluence in  the  development  of 
nations,  84 

Missions  in  China :  A  Defense 
and  an  Appreciation,  121-142; 
China's  great  need  to-day,  120; 
the  prominent  resisting  forces  to 
Christianity  in  China,  120;  pub- 
lic perplexity  about  missions  at 
the  time  of  the  Boxer  upheaval, 
121,  122;  the  outburst  of  criti- 
cism provoked  by  the  Boxer  dis- 
turbance, 122 ;  the  more  promi- 


334 


Index 


nent  of  these  criticisms  consid- 
ered and  answered  in  detail, 
122-136;  missionary  effort  in 
China  not  a  violation  of  treaty 
rights,  nor  an  infringement  upon 
liberty,  136;  monumental 
changes  in  China,  of  recent 
years,  due  in  large  part  to  mis- 
sionary influence,  137,  138;  the 
striking  testimony  of  Dr.  G.  E. 
Morrison  to  the  benefits  of  mis- 
sions in  China,  138 ;  statistical 
summary  of  missions  in  China, 
139-141  ;  the  proper  attitude  of 
Christian  nations  toward  China 
in  this  transition  era,  141,  142; 
some  recent  volumes  of  value  on 
China,  142 

Missions  in  the  Levant,  Strategic 
Import  of.     See  Levant 

Moffat,  Rev.  Robert,  18, 19 ;  quoted 
with  reference  to  progress  of 
trade  in  South  Africa  since  the 
entrance  of  missionaries,  100 ; 
teaching  the  art  of  agriculture  to 
the  Kaffirs,  115 

Mohammed.  See  "  Islam  and 
Christian  Missions,"  213-241 

Mohammedanism,  in  China,  124. 
See  "  Islam  and  Christian  Mis- 
sions," 213-241;  number  of 
Moslems  in  the  world,  218 

Mombasa,  starting  point  of  the 
Uganda  Railway,  18,  97 

Montalembert,  Charles  Forbes  de, 
cited,  104,  105 

Moor's  Indian  Charity  School,  69 

Moravian  Missions,  in  Greenland, 
16  ;  on  the  West  Coast  of  Africa, 
18  ;  in  Dutch  Guiana,  34 ;  grants 
of  land  in  Labrador  made  by 
George  III  to,  47  ;  early  labours 
of,  in  Georgia  and  Pennsylvania, 
64,  65  ;  among  the  Indians  of 
New  England,  66 ;  banishment 
of,  from  New  York,  66 

Moravians,  The,  their  witness  to 
evangelical  truth,  149 

Morrison,  Dr.  G.  E.,  favourable 
testimony  of,  to  missions  in 
China,  138 


Morrison,  Rev.  Robert,  his  services 
in  connection  with  treaty  be- 
tween China  and  Great  Britain, 
20,  108 ;  his  Chinese  hymn- 
book,  210 

Mott,  Dr.  John  R.,  29;  quoted, 
170;  his  services  as  a  layman  to 
the  cause  of  missions,  182;  his 
world  tour  (1912-1913)  and  its 
influence  in  promoting  move- 
ments toward  unity,  203 

Moukden,  the  Union  Theological 
College  at,  194 

Moule,  H.  F.,  cited,  269 

Mount  Lebanon  and  the  massacre 
of  i860,  34,  253 

Muir,  Sir  William,  his  interest  in 
the  missionary  cause,  182 

Munson,  Rev.  Samuel,  his  martyr- 
dom in  Sumatra,  31 

Mutsuhito,  Emperor,  monumental 
changes  in  national  life  of  Japan 
during  the  reign  of,  27 

Nairobi,  Conference  of  Missionary 
Societies  at,  in  1909,  201 

Nanking,  Treaty  of,  20 ;  Union 
Theological  Seminary  at,  194 

Natal,  advance  in  importing  trade 
in,  through  missionary  influence, 
100,  10 1 

Navalkar,  Rev.  Ganpatrao,  hymns 
written  by  him  in  Marathi,  208 

Near  East,  the  American  Mission- 
ary in  the,  245-261.  See 
American  Missionary  in  the 

Nestorians,  The,  their  entrance  into 
China  and  India,  15  ;  into  China, 
123 

New  England  Company,  The,  its 
origin  and  continued  existence, 
67 

New  England  Confederation,  quo- 
tation from  articles  of  the,  62 

New  Guinea,  services  of  Rev. 
James  Chalmers  and  Rev.  W.  G. 
Lawes  in,  29,  30 ;  Rev.  C.  W. 
Abel  and  Rev.  James  Chalmers 
instructing  the  natives  of,  in  the 
British  laws,  35  ;  British,  Dutch, 
and    German    missions  prepared 


Index 


335 


the  way  for  the  entrance  of  com- 
merce into,  ioi,  102  ;  trade  re- 
turns of  British  New  Guinea,  in 
1910,  102  ;  trade  returns  of  Ger- 
man New  Guinea,  in  1909,  102 ; 
Papuan  Industries,  Limited,  103 

New  Hebrides,  uplifting  transfor- 
mation of  savage  tribes  in  the, 
as  the  outcome  of  missionary  oc- 
cupation, 31  ;  New  Hebrides 
Presbyterian  Mission  Synod,  201 

New  Netherland  Company,  Peti- 
tion of,  to  the  Prince  of  Orange, 
59,60 

Newton,  Rev.  John,  his  hymns 
translated  into  the  languages  of 
foreign  mission  fields,  209 

New  York  Observer,  The,  articles 
reprinted  from,  145-155,  171- 
184 

New  Zealand,  its  peaceful  political 
attachment  to  the  British  Empire 
facilitated  by  missionaries,  30 

Ngapuhi  Tribe,  pioneer  mission  in 
New  Zealand  among  the,  30 

Nippon  Sei-Kokwai,  The,  a  union 
of  Anglican  and  American  Epis- 
copal Churches  in  Japan,  199 

Nobbs,  Edwin,  martyrdom  of,  31 

Norris,  Rev.  F.  L.,  his  article  on 
"  The  Comity  of  Missions  in 
China,"  188 

North  China  Union  College  of 
Theology,  at  Peking,  194 

North  America,  was  it  a  missionary 
discovery  ?  46,  47 

Nyasa  Industrial  Mission,  104 

Nyasaland  Protectorate,  The,  stim- 
ulus given  by  missions  to  civiliza- 
tion and  commerce  in,  98  ;  for- 
merly known  as  the  British  Cen- 
tral Africa  Protectorate,  98,  99 ; 
imports  and  exports  of,  in  1910, 
100 

Oceania,   diplomatic   negotiations 

with,  facilitated  by  missionaries, 

29-31 
Oglethorpe,  Gen.   James    Edward, 

philanthropic     and     missionary 

plans  of,  in  Georgia,  64 


Olaf,  King,  his  commission  to  Leif 
Ericson,  46,  47 

Oldham,  J.  H.,  his  helpful  services 
to  the  mission  cause,  183 

O'Neill,  T.,  the  martyrdom  of,  149 

Opium,  missionaries  a  unit  in  oppo- 
sition to  the  traffic  in,  36 

Osaka,  industrial  advance  in,  114, 

"5 

Overtoun,  Lord  (John  Campbell 
White),  his  interest  in  and  sup- 
port of  the  cause  of  missions,  182 

Pacific  Islands,  redeemed  from 
barbarism  by  missionary  occupa- 
tion, 102 

Palfrey,  J.  G.,  his  "  History  of 
New  England,"  cited,  62 

Palmer,  Rev.  Ray,  his  hymns 
translated  into  the  languages  of 
foreign  mission  fields,  209 

Pantaenus,  his  entrance  into  India, 

Papuan  Industries,  Limited,  the 
outgrowth  of  industrial  missions 
in  New  Guinea,  103 

Parker,  Dr.  Peter,  his  services  in 
connection  with  the  first  treaty 
between  China  and  the  United 
States,  20,  108 

Parkman,  Francis,  references  to  his 
historical  volumes,  54,  55 

Patteson,  Rt.  Rev.  John  Coleridge, 
the  martyrdom  of,  31,  149 

Peking,  services  of  missionaries 
during  the  siege  of,  in  1900,  32  ; 
North  China  Union  College  of 
Theology  at,  194 

Pemba,  industrial  missions  of  the 
Friends'  Foreign  Mission  Asso- 
ciation in, 104 

Penn,  William,  beautiful  mission- 
ary spirit  manifested  by,  63,  64 

Pennsylvania  Colony,  wise  and 
kind  treatment  of  Indians  mani- 
fested by  the,  64 

Pepper,  George  W.,  his  interest  as 
a  layman  in  the  missionary  en- 
terprise, 182 

Perry,  Commodore  Matthew  C, 
his  connection  with  the  opening 


336 


Index 


of  Japan  to  intercourse  with 
other  nations,  26,  27 

Philip,  Rev.  John,  18 ;  his  intro- 
duction of  trade  into  Bethels- 
dorp,  101 

Philippines,  The,  a  missionary  obli- 
gation on  the  part  of  American 
Christianity  is  a  manifest  duty, 
32 ;  Spanish  occupation  of,  in 
part  a  missionary  venture,  52; 
missionary  duty  in,  73 ;  the 
"  Evangelical  Union  of  the  Phil- 
ippine Islands,"  201 

Phinney,  F.  D.,  Burmese  type- 
writer invented  by,  116 

Pilgrim  Fathers,  The,  missionary 
clause  recorded  in  their  charters, 
56 ;  Petition  of  the  Directors  of 
the  New  Netherland  Company 
to  the  Prince  of  Orange,  59,  60 ; 
attitude  of  the  Pilgrim  Fathers 
toward  the  Indians,  65 

Plutschau,  Henry,  his  entrance 
into  India,  16 

Polo,  Marco,  his  mention  of  an 
Archbishop  of  Peking  in  his  day, 
122 

Polycarp,  martyrdom  of,  148 

Portal,  Sir  Gerald,  his  Commission 
of  Inquiry  to  Uganda,  19,  97 

Portuguese,  The,  colonization  of, 
in  South  America,  53 

Presbyterian  Alliance  in  India,  its 
formation  in  187 1,  195 

Presbyterian  Church  in  Korea, 
The,  formation  of,  in  1907,  and 
its  first  General  Assembly  at 
Pyeng  Yang  in  1912,  200 

Presbyterian  Church  of  Christ  in 
China,  192 

Princeton  University,  religious  and 
missionary  aims  of  its  founders, 

7° 
Printz,  Governor  Johan,  his  arrival 

in  New  Sweden  in  1643,  ^3 
Puritans,   The,  missionary  impulse 

among,  45,  46 
Pyeng  Yang,  meeting  of  the  first 
General  Assembly  of  the  Pres- 
byterian   Church   in   Korea   at, 
200 


Raleigh,  Sir  Walter,  17 ;   his 

contribution  toward  the  propa- 
gation of  the  Christian  religion 
in  the  Virginia  Colony,  57 

Rarotonga,  shipbuilding  taught 
by  the  Rev.  John  Williams  at, 
116 

Ravndal,  G.  Bei,  quoted,  86 

Raymbault,  Jesuit  missionary  ex- 
plorer, 54 

Rebmann,  John,  a  missionary  pio- 
neer in  South  Africa,  18 

Recent  Crisis  in  the  Syrian  Prot- 
estant College  at  Beirut,  The, 
287-296;  demand  of  the  Moslem 
students  to  be  excused  from  at- 
tendance upon  Christian  religious 
services,  287-291  ;  traditional 
policy  of  the  College  in  regard  to 
attendance  upon  religious  wor- 
ship, 288 ;  revolt  of  the  Moslem 
students,  289,  290 ;  a  modus 
vivendi  desired  by  the  Faculty, 
290 ;  points  emphasized  in  the 
Moslem  demand,  291,  292;  the 
College  a  Christian  missionary 
foundation,  293 ;  peculiar  diffi- 
culties of  the  situation,  293-295  ; 
the  final  solution  has  vindicated 
the  policy  of  the  Faculty  and 
Trustees,  296 

Records  of  the  Shanghai  Mission- 
ary Conference  of  1877,  The, 
cited,  127 

Reed,  Hon.  W.  B.,  his  services  in 
connection  with  the  Treaty  of 
Tientsin,  21-24 

Reinsch,  Prof.  Paul  S.,  his  "  Intel- 
lectual and  Political  Currents  in 
the  Far  East,"  cited,  142 

Rhenish  Missionary  Society,  its 
successful  work  among  the  Bat- 
taks,  31 

Richard,  Mrs.  Timothy,  her  Chinese 
tune-book,  209 

Robert  College,  Constantinople,  its 
engineering  department,  86 

Roman  Catholic  Missions,  in  Amer- 
ica, 16;  in  China,  39,  122;  the 
Jesuit  missionary  pioneers  in 
North  America,   53-55  ;  official 


Index 


337 


standing  of  Roman  Catholic 
priesthood  in  China,  132,  133 

Roosevelt,  Theodore,  mentioned 
among  the  Presidents  who  have 
advocated  missions,  183 

Ross,  Prof.  Edward  A.,  his  volume 
entitled,  "  The  Changing  Chi- 
nese," 142 

Sagas,  The,  information  about  the 
discovery  of  America  furnished 
in,  46,  47 

Saharanpur,  Theological  College  of 
the  Presbyterian  Church  of  India 
at,  198 

St.  Bartholomew,  massacre  on  the 
eve  of,  149 

St.  John's  College,  Agra,  com- 
mercial   training   given  at,  1 1 2, 

"3 

Samoan  Islands,  annexation  of,  to 
Christianity  long  before  their  po- 
litical destiny  was  determined,  30 

Sanches,  Lord  Rafael,  letter  of  Co- 
lumbus to,  50 

Sangle,  K.  R.,  author  of  hymns  in 
the  Marathi  language,  208 

Santa  Cruz  Islands,  martyrdom  of 
missionaries  in  the,  31 

Sastri,  Vedanayaga,  hymns  written 
by  him  in  Tamil,  208 

Satow,  Sir  Ernest,  his  favourable 
testimony  to  missions,  182 

Schwartz,  Christian  Friedrich,  his 
entrance  into  India,  16 

Scottish  Churches'  College,  Cal- 
cutta, a  union  of  the  educational 
plants  of  the  United  Free  and 
the  Established  Church  of  Scot- 
land, 198 

Scottish  Mission  Industries  Com- 
pany, a  corporation  assuming  the 
management  of  the  industrial 
work  of  the  United  Free  Church 
of  Scotland  in  India,  103 

Scottow's  "  Narrative  of  the  Plant- 
ing of  Massachusetts,"  61 

Selwyn,  Rt.  Rev.  George  Augus- 
tus, a  pioneer  empire-builder  in 
New  Zealand,  30 ;  instructing 
the    natives   of    the    Melanesian 


Islands  in  just  and  honest  busi- 
ness methods,  113 

Serampore,  plan  for  a  great  co- 
operative Christian  University  at, 
198 

Sergeant,  Rev.  John,  his  mission- 
ary labours  among  the  North 
American  Indians,  66 

Services  of  Missionaries,  in  times  of 
war  and  public  calamity,  32-34  ; 
in  the  promotion  and  establish- 
ment of  peace  among  the  na- 
tions, 33,  34 

Seventh  Annual  Conference  of  the 
Foreign  Mission  Boards  of  the 
United  States  and  Canada,  re- 
port of,  as  to  the  attitude  of  civil 
governments  toward  Christian 
missions  and  missionaries,  40 

Severance,  Louis  H.,  his  personal 
devotion  as  a  layman  to  the  pro- 
motion of  the  cause  of  missions, 
182 

Shanghai,  importance  of,  as  a  port 
of  entry,  no;  missionary  con- 
ference at,  in  1907,  188,  190, 
191 ;  Presbyterian  Conference 
at,  in  1901,  192 

Shansi,  Missionary  Peace  Commis- 
sion in,  40 

Shantung  Protestant  University, 
scope  of  the,  194 

Shedd,  Rev.  W.  A.,  quoted,  244, 264 

Sheffield,  Rev.  D.  Z.,  Chinese 
typewriter  invented  by,  115,  116 

Shepard,  Thomas,  cited,  62 

Simeon,  Charles,  his  ardent  sup- 
port of  foreign  missions,  182 

Slavs,  The,  mission  of  Cyril  and 
Methodius  to,  15 

Sleman,  John  B.,  Jr.,  his  initiative 
in  the  formation  of  the  Laymen's 
Missionary  Movement,  172 

Smith,  Rev.  Eli,  his  journey  of  ex- 
ploration with  Rev.  H.  G.  O. 
Dwight  in  1830,  86 

Smith,  Dr.  George,  his  eftorts  to 
advance  the  missionary  cause, 
182 

Smith,  Lieut.  S.,  his  martyrdom  in 
Uganda,  149 


33« 


Index 


Sobieski  (King  John  III),  his  de- 
feat of  the  Turks  before  Vienna, 
and  the  consequent  rescue  of 
Europe  from  a  possible  Moslem 
domination,  277 

Social  Results  of  Missions,  refer- 
ence to  information  concerning, 
164 

Society  for  Promoting  Christian 
Knowledge,  The,  its  project  for 
the  advancement  of  religion  in 
the  Plantations,  67 

Society  (Scottish)  for  Promoting 
Christian  Knowledge,  its  mis- 
sionary work  among  the  North 
American  Indians,  68 

Society  for  the  Propagation  of  the 
Gospel  in  Foreign  Parts,  The, 
68 ;  valuable  missionary  work 
of,  in  Canada,  and  throughout 
the  American  Colonies,  69 

Soto,  Ferdinand  de,  his  discovery 
of  the  lower  Mississippi,  54,  55 

South  America,  model  stores 
opened  by  missionaries  among 
the  Indians  in,  113 

South  India  United  Church,  a 
merger  of  previously  existing 
unions  of  South  Indian  Churches, 
195,  196 

South  Indian  United  Church,  Synod 
of,  195 

Spanish  Missions,  in  North  Amer- 
ica, 52,  53 

Spectator,   The    (London),   quoted, 

33.34 

Speer,  Dr.  Robert  E.,  182;  quoted 
with  reference  to  the  spirit  of 
unity  manifested  by  the  Chris- 
tian forces  in  China,  190,  191  ; 
quoted  in  regard  to  the  spirit  of 
Islam,  216 

Spicer,  Sir  Albert,  his  interest  in  the 
cause  of  Christian  missions,  182 

Spirit  of  Rlissions,  The,  quoted 
with  reference  to  the  faith  and 
fortitude  manifested  by  Chinese 
Christians  during  times  of  mar- 
tyrdom, 152 

Standard,  The  (London),  quoted, 
109 


Standing  Committee  of  Cooperating 
Christian  Missions  in  Japan,  The, 
(now  known  as  the  "  Con  ference 
of  Federated  Missions  in  Japan  "), 
199 

Statesman's  Year-Book,  The, 
quoted,  92,  102,  no 

Statistics,  of  international  commerce 
of  the  world,  III;  of  missions  in 
China,  1 39-141  ;  of  martyrdom 
in  China,  150  ;  of  Scripture  trans- 
lation, 163  ;  of  missions  in  the 
Turkish  Empire,  250-252 

Steele,  Anne,  her  hymns  translated 
into  the  languages  of  foreign 
mission  fields,  209 

Stevens,  John  Austin,  quoted,  53 

Stevenson,  James,  Chairman  of  the 
African  Lakes  Corporation,  99 

Stevenson,  Robert  Louis,  his  ad- 
vocacy of  foreign  missions,  182 

Stewart,  Dr.  James,  his  long  con- 
nection with  Lovedale,  105 ; 
quoted,  117 

Strategic  Import  of  Missions  in 
the  Levant,  The,  265-274.  See 
Levant 

Stratton,  Hon.  F.  S.,  quoted,  109 

Stribling,  Flag-Officer,  his  expedi- 
tion to  Nanking,  25 

Student  Volunteer  Movement,  The, 
Convention  in  New  York  of,  in 
commemoration  of  the  "  Hay- 
stack Centennial,"  171-173 

Sumatra,  missionary  efforts  in,  31 

Swedish  Colonial  Missions,  63 

Syria,  "  A  Christmas  Gift  of  Prayer 
for,"  299-303.  See  also,  "  His 
Star  in  the  East,"  307-309,  and 
"  December  Voyage  of  Discov- 
ery." 3l3~32° 

Syrian  Protestant  College,  Beirut, 
School  of  Commerce  at  the,  86, 
112.  See  «  Recent  Crisis  in  the," 
287-296 

Taft,  William  Howard,  named 
among  the  Presidents  favouring 
missions,  183 

Tau  Kwang,  Emperor,  his  edict  of 
toleration,  23 


Index 


339 


Theological  Education,  Union 
Movements  in,  on  the  foreign 
field,  194,  198,  199,  200,  202 

Thompson,  Rev.  Augustus  C, 
cited,  66 

Thompson,  Rev.  R.  Wardlavv,  his 
statement  about  the  Rev.  Charles 
W.  Abel,  of  New  Guinea,  35 

Thomson,  Rev.  William  M.,  his 
services  during  the  massacre  of 
i860,  in  Syria,  34 

Tientsin,  treaties  of,  with  the  United 
States,  Great  Britain,  France,  and 
Russia,  21  ;  Toleration  Clauses 
of  the  Tientsin  Treaties  of  1858 
and  1869,  128,  129 

Tokyo,  Central  Theological  Col- 
lege at,  200 

Toleration  Clause  in  Treaty  of 
Tientsin,  21-24,  I28,  129 

Tonga  Islands,  establishment  of 
British  Protectorate  ov«r  the,  30 

Treat,  Rev.  Samuel,  his  missionary 
labours  among  the  North  Amer- 
ican Indians,  66 

Treaties,  International,  the  part 
taken  by  missionaries  in  facili- 
tating treaties  with  China,  20— 
23 ;  their  helpfulness  in  securing 
religious  toleration,  20-24,  128; 
appreciation  of  this  expressed  by 
the  United   States  Government, 

25 

Tucker,  Rt.  Rev.  Alfred  R.,  his 
missionary  appeal  for  Uganda,  19 

Tupper,  Thomas,  his  missionary 
services  among  the  North  Amer- 
ican Indians,  66 

Turkish  Empire,  missionaries  act- 
ing as  mediators,  pacificators, 
and  saviours  of  lives  and  prop- 
erty, in  the,  34;  beginning  of 
missionary  work,  in  1819,  in  the, 
76 ;  services  of  missionaries 
toward  the  advancement  of  com- 
merce in  the,  86,  112  ;  see  "  The 
American  Missionary  in  the 
Near  East,"  245-261  ;  evangel- 
istic statistics  of  the,  250  ;  edu- 
cational statistics  of  missions  in 
the,  250,  251  ;  literary  statistics 


of  missions  in  the,  251  ;  medical 
statistics  of  missions  in  the,  251, 
252 

Uganda,  the  British  Protectorate 
of,  largely  the  outcome  of  mis- 
sions in,  18,  19,  96,  97 ;  the 
Uganda  Railway,  96,  97 

Uganda  Company,  Limited,  founded 
in  1903  as  an  outgrowth  of  the 
industrial  missions  of  the  Church 
Missionary  Society,  103 

Uganda  Railway,  a  colossal  achieve- 
ment by  Great  Britain,  96,  97  ; 
back  of  it  the  missionary  occu- 
pation of  Uganda,  97 

Ulfilas,  his  mission  to  the  Goths,  15 

Union  Movements  in  Mission 
Fields :  A  Survey  of  Recent 
Achievements,  187-203;  the 
urgency  and  attractiveness  of  the 
call  for  union  movements  in  mis- 
sion fields,  187;  the  proposed 
"  Conference  on  Faith  and  Or- 
der," 188,  189;  the  phenomenal 
progress  of  the  foreign  mission- 
ary trend  toward  unity,  189; 
the  "  Holy  Catholic  Church  in 
China,"  and  the  irenic  spirit  in 
which  it  was  formed,  189,  190; 
the  notable  prominence  of  the 
spirit  of  unity  at  the  Shanghai 
Conference,  in  1907,  190,  191  ; 
the  consummation  of  Presby- 
terian union  in  China,  191,  192; 
other  union  movements  in  China, 
192,  193  ;  educational  union  in 
China,  193,  194 ;  remarkable 
Chinese  mergers  in  theological 
instruction,  194;  the  prospects 
of  a  Christian  university  in  China, 
195  ;  ecclesiastical  rapproche- 
ments in  India,  195-197  ;  the 
union  of  educational  efforts  in 
India,  198  ;  a  summary  of  Japan- 
ese union  movements,  198-200; 
Korea  and  its  irresistible  trend 
toward  Church  unity,  200,  201  ; 
other  examples  of  cooperation  in 
Africa,  Australasia,  and  Syria, 
201,    202 ;    the    significance    of 


34° 


Index 


these  achievements  in  modern 
Church  history,  202,  203 

Union  Theological  College,  at 
Bangalore,  198 

Union  Theological  Colleges  and 
Seminaries  in  China,  194 

United  States,  The,  its  rank  among 
the  nations  as  an  exporting  coun- 
try, 92,  1 10,  ill 

Vanderkemp,  Dr.  John  T.,  a 
South  African  pioneer  mission- 
ary, 18 

Van  Dyck,  Dr.  C.  V.  A.,  his  serv- 
ices during  the  massacre  of 
i860,  in  Syria,  34 

Vassy,  massacre  at,  149 

Venn,  Rev.  Henry,  his  estimate  of 
the  value  of  a  foreign  missionary 
to  commerce,  94  ;  his  keen  inter- 
est in  foreign  missions,  182 

Verbeck,  Rev.  Guido  F.,  his  na- 
tional and  international  services 
to  Japan,  27,  28 ;  his  exposition 
of  international  law  in  Japan,  34 

Victoria  Nyanza,  terminus  of 
Uganda  Railway  at  Port  Flor- 
ence on  the,  18,  97 

Virginia  Colony,  The,  Charter  of, 

17.  57.  58 
Visits   to   mission  lands  by  repre- 
sentative men,  28,  29 

Waldenses,  The,  their  witness  to 

evangelical  truth,  149 
Ward,  Rev.  N.  M.,  his  unsuccessful 

efforts  to  reach  the  fierce  Battaks 

of  Sumatra,  31 
Warneck,  Rev.  Joh.,  120 
Watts,  Isaac,  his  hymns  translated 

into   the    languages    of    foreign 

mission  fields,  208 
Wesley,    Charles,    his    missionary 

visit  to  Georgia,  65  ;  his  hymns 

translated  into  the  languages  of 

foreign  mission  fields,  208 
Wesley,  John,  his  missionary  visit 

to  Georgia,  65 
Wesleyan  Missionary  Society,  The, 

early  missions  of,  in  Africa,  1 8  ; 

in  the  Fiji  Islands,  30 


West    China    Educational   Union, 

193 

West  China  Missionary  Conference, 
at  Chentu,  189 

Wheelock,  Dr.  Eleazar,  educational 
benefits  conferred  by,  69 

White,  J.  Campbell,  appointed 
General  Secretary  of  the  Lay- 
men's Missionary  Movement, 
173;  his  epitome  of  the  Move- 
ment, 176  ;  his  services  as  a  lay- 
man to  the  cause  of  missions, 
182,  183 

White,  Laura  M.,  her  Mandarin 
music-book,  209 

Whitehead,  Rt.  Rev.  H.,  his  partic- 
ipation in  the  Madras  Confer- 
ence of  1902  a  happy  omen  of 
missionary  cooperation,  188 

Whitman,  Rev.  Marcus,  his  mis- 
sionary and  political  services  to 
the  United  States,  71,  72 

Wilberforce,  William,  his  interest 
in  and  support  of  foreign  mis- 
sions, 182 

Williams,  Frederick  Wells,  cited, 
24 

Williams,  Rev.  John,  his  work  as  a 
shipbuilder  in  the  Pacific  Is- 
lands, 116;  martyrdom  of,  149 

Williams,   Rev.   John   E.,  quoted, 

158 

Williams,  Roger,  his  missionary 
service  among  the  North  Amer- 
ican Indians,  62,  63 

Williams,  Dr.  Samuel  Wells,  his 
services  in  connection  with  the 
Treaty  of  Tientsin,  21-24,  108 ; 
accompanying  Commodore 
Perry's  first  and  second  expedi- 
tions to  Japan,  26,  27 

Willibrord,  early  mission  in  Europe 
of,  15 

Wilson,  Capt.  James,  commander 
of  the  Duff  on  its  voyage  to  the 
South  Pacific  in  1796,  18 

Winslow,  Edward,  cited,  62 ;  his 
services  in  England  toward  the 
founding  of  a  corporation  to  con- 
duct organized  missions  in  New 
England,  67 


Index 


34» 


Winsor,  Justin,  his  "  Narrative  and 
Critical  History  of  America," 
and  "  Life  of  Christopher  Colum- 
bus," cited,  49,  53,  62 

Winthrop,  Governor  John,  mis- 
sionary zeal  of,  17 ;  quotation 
from  his  journal,  60 

Woman1  s  Work,  articles  reprinted 
from,  299-303,  307-309,  313- 
320 

Wood,  Sir  Charles,  his  interest  in 
the  cause  of  foreign  missions,  182 

World  Conference  on  Faith  and 
Order,  1 88,  189 

World  Missionary  Conference,  at 
Edinburgh,  in  19 10,  165,  188  ;  re- 
port of  the,  cited,  192,  197 ; 
quotation  from  report  of  the,  212 

Wu-Han  University,  the  proposed 
name  for  the  Christian  Univer- 
sity in  China  to  be  founded  by 
the  United  Universities'  Com- 
mittee, 194,  195 


Xavier,  Francis,  his  mission  to 
India,  16 

Yale  University,  religious  and 
missionary  purpose  in  its  founda- 
tion, 70 

Young,  Fisher,  martyrdom  of,  in 
Santa  Cruz  Islands,  31 

Young  Men's  Christian  Association, 
in  China,  140,  141 

Zambesi  Industrial  Mission,  104 

Ziegenbalg,  Bartholomew,  his  en- 
trance into  India,  16 

Zinzendorf,  Count  Nicolaus  Lud- 
wig,  his  hymns  translated  into 
the  languages  of  foreign  mission 
fields,  210 

Zwemer,  Rev.  Samuel  M.,  cited, 
214 ;  quoted,  with  reference  to 
the  present  condition  of  the  Mos- 
lem world,  244 


Printed  in  the  United  States  of  America 


CONCERNING  FOREIGN  LANDS 

.  i.  ii  I,  .  i   I  h  ii  i     i  "i     .'    r    ■  — i    B8 

ARTHUR  E.  COPPING 

A  Journalist  in  the  Holy  Land 

Profusely  Illustrated  in  Colors  by  Harold  Copping, 
F.R.A.    8vo,  cloth,  net  $2.00. 

The  London  Times  says:  "This  is  just  what  one  would 
expect  from  the  collaboration  of  a  genial  and  clever  journalist 
and  an  accomplished  artist."  The  Scotsman  says:  '  Mr.  Cop- 
ping's  story  is  graphically  told  with  many_  humorous  touches 
and  especially  noteworthy  for  its  human  interest  in  the  ex- 
isting inhabitants  of  the  country." 
ROBERT  H.  MILLIGAN 

Fetish  Folk  of  WesT:  Africa 

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The  author  of  that  fascinating  volume  THE  JUNGLE 
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author  says,  "Both  are  about  the  people  of  Africa,  what- 
ever interest  they  have  is  entirely  human,  but  the  first 
is  observational,  the  second  is  more  intimate,  and  studies 
the  African  from  the  standpoint  of  his  beliefs — fetishism." 
J.  DYER  BALL 

Of  the  Hing  Kong  Civil  Service  Retired 

The  Chinese  at  Home 

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and  revealing  to  the  eyes  of  the  West  the  real  China." — 
N.  Y.  Times. 
W.  A.  P.  MARTIN,  D.D.,LL.D. 

The  Lore  of  Cathay 

Or,  The  Intellect  of  China.  In  five  parts :  Arts 
and  Sciences,  Literature,  Philosophy  and  Religion, 
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business  men  and  the  statesmen,  whose  eyes  are  not  on  votes, 

have   long   held Mr.   Kawakami's   arguments   are   sound." 

— <New  York  Times. 


MISSIONS 


ALICE  M.   GUERNSEY 

A  Queen  Esther  Round  Robin 

Decorated  Paper,  in  Envelope,  net  25c. 

"It  supplies  a  long-felt  want  in  getting  the  girls  of 
younger  Queen  Esther  age  interested  in  the  Why  and  How  of 
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and  many  loving  deeds  will  be  wrought  in  the  lives  of  the 
girls  which  had  their  inception  in  the  careful  study  of  this 
book." — Woman's   Home    Missions. 

Children's  Missionary  Series 

Cloth,  decorated,  each,  net  60c. 
Children  of  Persia.     By  Mrs.  Napier  Malcolm. 
The    latest    addition    to    this   popular    series-      The    story 
Is  related  in  such  a  manner  as  to  please  as  well  as  instruc* 
the  young  reader.     Handsomely  bound,   with  colored  illustra- 
tions. 
JAMES  F.  LOVE,  P.P. 

Ant.  Cor.  Ste.  Uome.Minion  Board  Southtr*  Ba/tiit  Convention 

The  Mission  of  Our  Nation 

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In  "The  Unique  Message  and  Universal  Mission  of 
Christianity"  Mr.  Eove  gave  as  the  foundation  reason  for 
missions  the  peculiar  character  of  the  Gospel.  In  this  later 
volume  he  presents  as  the  fundamental  ground  for  home  mis- 
sions and  good  citizenship,  the  peculiar  mission  of  the  Anglo- 
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mission  discussion  on  the  broader  lines  with  a  foreign 
mission   inference    and   objective. 

BRUCE    KINNEY  Formerly  Sup't  Baptist  Minions  in  Utah 

Mormonism,  The  Islam  of  America 

Interdenominational  Home  Mission  Study  Course. 
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articles  of  faith,  missions;  together  with  the  results  of  the 
Mormon  faith  in  character  and  life. 

MARY  CLARK  BARNES 

Early  Stories  and  Songs  FORfjJEENlI.uSHHNTS 

A.  Primer  for  Immigrants.     Illustrated,  net  60c. 

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knowing  only  English  have  given  to  pupils  of  different  na- 
tionalties  the  ability  to  speak,  read  and  write  the  English 
required  for  practical  use.  Dr.  Edward  A.  Steiner  says: 
"Not  only  practical  but  it  affords  easy  transition  to  the 
higher  things.  The  Bible  is  a  wonderful  primer,  simple, 
yet  wonderfully  profounds  I  am  glad  that  it  is  the  baste 
t£  your  system  of  teaching  English  to  foreigners."       r 


HOME  MISSIONS 


JOHN  T.  FARIS         a  uthor  of '  'Men  Who  Made  Good" 

The  Alaskan  Pathfinder 

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tells  the  story  of  this  apostle  of  the  Western  Indians  in  clear- 
cut,  incisive  chapters  which  will  hold  the  boy's  attention 
from    first   to    last. 

JOSEPH  B.    CLARK,  P.P.  The  Story  of 

-^— — — — ^— — ^— — — —       American  Home  Missions 

Leavening  the  Nation : 

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brought  up-to-date. 

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The  New  America 

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subject  of  immigration.  The  author  is  eminently  fitted  for 
writing  on  this  theme  as  she  has  been  a  worker  among  immi- 
grants, and  has  given  much  time  to  studying  the  problem. 

LAURA  GEROULP  CRAIG 

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author  has  written  a  "parable  study"  which  deals  more  with 
lessons  and  agencies  than   with   issues  and  processes. 

LEILA  ALLEN  PIMOCK 

Comrades  from  Other  Lands 

Home  Mission  Junior  Text  Book.  Illustrated, 
i2mo,  paper,  net  25c.  (postage  4c). 

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BORS which  treated  of  the  lives  and  occupations  of  foreign- 
ers in  our  cities.  This  latter  tells  what  the  immigrants  are 
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twelve  to  sixteen  will  find  here  material  to  enlist  the  syn> 
pathies  and  bold  the  interest  of  their  scholars. 


MISSIONARY 

111  ae—aaH 

JAMES  S.  DENNIS,  D.  D. 

The  Modern  Gall  of  Missions : 

Studies  In  Some  of  the  Larger  Aspects  of  a  Great 
Enterprise.    8vo,  cloth,  net  $1.50. 

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ume on  Foreign  Missions,  eighteen  very  suggestive  and  in- 
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the  Dean  of  the  School  of  the  Philosophy  of  Modern  Mis- 
sions. He  is  both  keenly  analytical  as  well  as  broad  in  his 
outlook.^  This  intensity  and  assurance  can  hardly  fail  to 
deeply  impress  and  influence  the  reader.  It  is  preeminently 
a  dynamic  book. 

MISS  MINNA  G.  COWAN 

The  Education  of  the  Women  of  India 

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The  subject  is  treated  historically,  philosophically  and 
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the  East  Indians  themselves  and  the  missionaries,  to  solving 
the  educational  problems  of  the  country  are  clearly  shown. 
The  book  is  an  important  and  suggestive  addition  to  the 
literature  of  education  in  foreign  lands,  being  a  worthy 
companion  volume  to  Miss  Burton's  "The  Education  of 
W'bmen  in  China." 

ARCHIBALD  McLEAN 

Epoch  Makers  of  Modern  Missions 

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The  author  of  "Where  the  Book  Speaks,"  has  given  in 
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modern  missionary  leaders  which  for  clearness,  brevity, 
directness  of  style  and  inspirational  value,  have  rarely  been 
surpassed.  Each  characterization  is  truly  "much  in  little," 
and  the  book  is  a  distinct  and  most  acceptable  addition  to 
missionary  biography. 

REV.   W.  MUNN 

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esting story  of  their  fifteen  hundred  mile  journey.  The  book 
should  be  a  very  acceptable  addition  to  missionary  stories 
and  aide-light  reading. 


FOREIGN  MISSIONS— BIOGRAPHY 


DANIEL  McGILVARY,  P.P. 

A  Half  Century  Among  the  Siamese 
and  the  Lao 

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traved  with  graphic  power.  It  is  a  book  of  adventure  and 
human  interest  and  a  notable  contribution  to  American  for- 
eign missionary  literature." — -Presbyterian  Banner. 

WILLIAM  ELLIOT  GRIFFIS,  P.P.,  L.H.P. 

A  Modern  Pioneer  in  Korea 

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trated, i2mo,  cloth,  net  $1.25. 

This  life  is  another  stirring  chapter  in  the  record  of 
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has  woven  a  most  picturesque  and  interesting  background  of 
Korean  landscape,  life  and  history.  It  is  a  book  that  will 
win  interest  in  missionary  effort. 

MARGARET  E.  BURTON 

Notable  Women  of  Modern  China 

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up  this  volume  of  striking  biographies.  If  these  women  are 
types  to  be  followed  by  a  great  company  of  like  aspirations 
the    future    of   the   nation   is   assured. 

ROBERT  McCHEYNE  MATEER 

Character-Building  in  China 

The  Life  Story  of  Julia  Brown  Mateer.  Illustra- 
ted, i2mo,  cloth,  net  $1.00. 

"Gives  a  vivid,  many-sided  picture  of  missionary  work. 
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alike  to  the  advocates  of  missionary  work  and  general  readers 
who  enjoy  real  glimpses  of  foreign  and  pagan  civilization."— 
Presbyterian   Advance. 


FOREIGN  MISSIONS 


Z.    S.    LOFTIS,  M.  D. 

A  Message  from  Batang 

The    Diary   of    Z.    S.    Loftis,    M.D.      Illustrated, 
l2mo,  cloth,  net  75c. 

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missionary   in   this   "closed"   land. 

HON.  WILLIAM  JENNINGS  BRYAN 

The  Fruits  of  the  Tree 

16010,  boards,  net  35c. 

This  is  the  address  which  Mr.  Bryan  delivered  at  the 
World's  Missionary  Conference  at  Edinburgh  and  contains 
his  views  on  missions — views  which  are  the  result  of  hife 
personal  and  painstaking  investigation  on   foreign  fields. 

HELEN  S.  DYER 

Pandita  Ramabai 

The  Story  of  Her  Life.     Second  Edition.     Illus- 
trated, i2mo,  cloth,  $1.25. 

"The  story  of  a  wonderful  life,  still  in  the  midcareer  of 
high  usefulness.  'Pandita'  should  be  known  to  all  American 
women." — The   Outlook. 

MINERVA   L.   GUTHAPFEL 

The  Happiest  Girl  in  Korea 

And  Other  Sketches  from  the  Land  of  Morning 
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These  sketch  stories  of  actual  life  in  Korea  by  a  mis- 
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JOHN  JACKSON 

Secretary  to  the  Mission  to  Lepers  in  India  and  the  East. 

Mary  Reed,  Missionary  to  the  Lepers 

New  Edition.  Illustrated,  i2mo,  cloth,  net  50c.; 
paper,  net  25c. 

6.   T.  B.    DAVIS 

Korea  for  Christ 

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fcy  an  eye  witness,  who  himself  participated  in  the  work. 


FOREIGN  MISSIONS 


GEORGE  F.  HERRICK,  P.P. 

Fifty  Ytars  Missionary  0/  thi  American  Board  in  Turkty 

Christian  and  Mohammedan 

A  Plea  for  Bridging  the  Chasm.  Illustrated,  net  $1.25. 

"Dr.  Herrick  has  given  his  life  to  missionary  work  among 
the  Mohammedans.  Opinions  from  leading  missionaries  to 
Mohammedans,  in  all  parts  of  the_  world  have  been  brought 
together  in  the  book  for  the  elucidation  of  essential  points 
of  the  problem  and  form  an  immensely  practical  feature  of 
the  discussion." — Henry  Otis  Dwight,  LL.D. 

JAMES  L.  BARTON,   D.  D. 

Human  Progress  Through  Missions 

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By  the  Foreign  Secretary  of  the  American  Board.  The 
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will  carry  a  message  of  conviction  to  many  a  reader  who 
may  not  be  fully  persuaded  of  the  value  and  necessity  of 
Christian  work  in  foreign  lands. 
ALICE  M.  GUERNSEY 

A  Queen  Esther  Round  Robin 

Decorated  Paper,  in  Envelope,  net  25c. 
"It   was  a  pretty   conceit  to   have   a   disbanding  mission 
circle  keep  up  their  mutual  connection  by  writing  a  "round 
robin."      It    is   just    the    thing    for   girls'    mission   bands."— 
S.  S.   Times. 

S.  M.  ZWEMER,  F.R.G.S. 

Arabia :  The  Cradle  of  Islam 

Studies  in  the  Geography,  People  and  Politics  of 
the  Peninsula;  with  an  account  of  Islam  and  Mis- 
sionary Work.  New  Edition.  Illustrated.  8vo, 
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ANSTICE  ABBOTT 

The  Stolen  Bridegroom    EAS£Z>?™™ytM 

Illustrated,  i2mo,  cloth,  net  75c. 

The  author  has  vividly  portrayed  some  of  the  ways  in 
■which  Christ  enters  the  Hindu  heart;  Just  the  book  to  read 
in  the  auxiliary  society  or  to  bring  into  the  reading  club."— 
Mission  Studies. 

Children's  Missionary  Series 

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New   Volumes. 
Children  of  Persia.  Mrs.  Napier  Malcolm. 
Children  of  Borneo.    Edwin  H.  Gomes. 

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represented  as  well  as  by  a  writer  who  knows  how  to  tell 
a  story  that  will  both  entertain  and  instruct  chilrlren. 


FOREIGN  MISSIONS 


ROBERT  E.  SPEER  The  Cote  Lectures  for  1911. 

Some  Great  Leaders  in  the  World 

Movement     i2mo,  cloth,  net  $1.25 

Mr.  Speer  in  his  characteristic  inspiring  way  has  pre* 
tented  the  key  note  of  the  lives  of  six  of  the  World's  great- 
est missionaries:  Raymond  Lull,  the  crusading  spirit  in  mis- 
sions;  William  Carey,  the  problems  of  the  pioneer;  Alexander 
Duff,  Missions  and  Education;  George  Bowen,  the  ascetic 
ideal  in  missions;  John  Lawrence,  politics  and  missions;  and 
Charles  G.  Gordon,  modern  missionary  knight-errancy. 

S.  M.  ZWEMER,  F.R.G.S.,  and  Others 

Islam  and  Missions 

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This    volume    presents    the    papers    read   at   the    Second 
Conference  on  Missions  to  Moslems,  recently  held  in  Lack- 
now,   India.      The   contributors   are   all   experts   of   large  ex- 
perience in  such  mission  effort. 

VAN  SOMMER,  ANNIE,  and  Othen 

Daylight  in  the  Harem 

A  New  Era  for  Moslem  Women.    In  Press. 

Woman's  work  for  Woman  is  nowhere  more  needed  than 
on  the  part  of  Christian  women  for  their  sisters  of  Islam. 
It  is  a  most  difficult  field  of  service,  but  this  volume  by  au- 
thors long  and  practically  interested  in  this  important  Chris- 
tian ministry,  demonstrates  how  effectually  this  work  has 
opened  and  is  being  carried  forward  with  promising  results. 

ROBERT  A.  HUME,  P.P. 

An  Interpretation  of  India's  Religious 

XT:  tfrrirxr     Introduction  by  President  King,  LL,D. 
niSIOry  qfOberlin  College 

i2tno,  cloth,  net  $1.25. 

The  author  of  this  careful,  though  popular,  study,  is 
eminently  qualified  to  deal  with  the  subject  of  his  thought- 
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dence in  India  and  intimate  study  of  India's  religious  his- 
tory, what  he  says  will  be  accepted  as  the  estimate  and  in- 
terpretation of  an  authority. 

MARGARET  E.  BURTON 

The  Education  of  Women  in  China 

illustrated,  12010,  cloth,  net  $1.25. 

The  author  of  this  scholarly  study  of  the  Chinese  woman 
and  education  is  the  daughter  of  Prof.  Ernest  E.   Burton,  of 

the  University  of   Chicago The  work  is  probably  the 

most  thorough  study  of  an  important  phase  of  the  economic 
development  of  the  world's  most  populous  country  that  has 
appeared. 


